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For  the  Good  of  the  World 
Finding  the  Real  God 


BY 

CHARLES  GERARD  CONN 

Author  of  The  Sixth  Sense 


>  J  >  > ,  >  ^  J  >    i 


>  >  J  >  >  >     ' ) 


} '  '  '  J  ■ 


1919 

GEO.  RICE  &.  SONS 

Los  Angeles 


DEDICATION 

This  volume  is  respectfully  dedicated 
to  believers  in  common  sense  methods 
of  religious  worship,  based  on  facts 
and  scientific  principles. 


-  €       C  «      ,«   « 


Copyright  1919,  by  Charles  Gerard  Conn 


INDEX   TO   SERIES   OF   PROPOSITIONS 

The  explanation  of  each  proposition  will  be  found  on 
the  page  indicated,  and  will  be  complete  in  itself. 

Page 
Dedication. 

Explanatory 13 

Proposition  Number  One:  That  man  has  existed  for 
more  than  five  hundred  thousand  years,  and  that 
the  skeletal  relics  of  prehistoric  man,  together  with 
full  information  concerning  their  discoveries,  may 
be  found  in  several  European  museum.         .         .     36 

Record  of  Prehistoric-Man  Discoveries.         .         .     40 

Proposition  Number  Two:  That  a  careful  investiga- 
tion of  the  mental  and  physical  development  of 
man,  its  cause,  inception  and  growth  will  convince 
intelligent  persons  that  we  are  not  controlled  by  a 
supernatural  influence,  and  that  our  mentalities 
are  physical  functions 41 

Proposition  Number  Three:  That  the  principles  for 
mental  regeneration,  advocated  in  this  series  of 
propositions,  must  necessarily  conflict  with  re- 
ligious and  other  methods  of  reformation,  but  no 
criticism  of  these  methods  is  intended.  All  means 
of  reformation  that  lead  to  right  doing  deserve 
earnest  and  heartfelt  support 48 

Proposition  Number  Four:  That  we  are  direct  de- 
scendants of  prehistoric  man,  and  as  such  belong 
to  vertebrate  animal  life.  We  are  controlled  by 
animal  functions,  tendencies  and  proclivities,  but 
possess  a  superior  mentality  by  means  of  which  we 
have  gradually  upbuilded  ourselves  from  a  bestial 
state  to  our  present  enlightened,  civilized  condition.     52 


INDEX  TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

Proposition  Number  Five:  That  each  unit  or  living 
thing  in  earthly  creation  is  endowed  with  ability  to 
procreate  its  own  kind,  and  to  maintain  its  own 
existence,  when  conditions  are  favorable.  Each  of 
these  units,  or  living  things,  is  entirely  independent 
of  other  forms  of  earthly  life,  and  is  in  no  way 
related  to  nor  has  an  affinity  for  them.        .         .     56 

Proposition  Number  Six:  It  is  impossible  for  one 
person  to  receive  information  and  knowledge  or 
to  communicate  with  another  person  unless  by 
means  of  the  five  senses,  touch,  taste,  sight,  smell 
and  hearing.  That  is  an  inexorable  law  of  nature. 
And  when  mechanical  processes  are  employed  for 
an  exchange  of  communications  the  five  senses 
must  be  used  to  render  them  intelligible.        .        .     59 

Proposition  Number  Seven  :  That  life  animates  all 
existence  and  causes  it  to  thrive  and  procreate  in 
accordance  with  natural  laws.  That  mankind  is 
subject  to  these  laws,  and  to  various  changes 
that  take  place.  That  while  life  provides  the  ani- 
mation that  sustains  mankind,  the  six  senses  create 
and  control  the  mental  forces  that  call  into  use  the 
brain  cellular  activities,  and  that  these  cellular  ac- 
tivities supply  mental  ability,  and  cause  our  phys- 
ical organs  to  function.         .         .         .         .         .62 

Proposition  Number  Eight  :  That  as  children  of  na- 
ture, inspired  and  animated  by  life,  we  should  not 
abuse  the  gifts  of  our  benefactor  by  deliberately 
assisting  in  their  destruction,  through  acts  of  wrong 
doing.  Good  health,  reasonable  enjoyment,  pros- 
perity in- worldly  affairs,  intellectual  success,  and 
a  long  earthly  existence,  followed  by  immortality, 
will  be  our  reward  for  right  living  and  right  doing.     66 


^ 


INDEX   TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

Proposition  Number  Nine:  That  unless  we  protect 
our  mentalities  from  the  ravages  of  wrong  doing, 
We  cannot  expect  to  be  happy  and  contented.        .     69 

Proposition  Number  Ten  :  That  man  is  his  own  lord 
and  master,  and  that  his  right  or  wrong  doing 
results  from  either  good  or  harmful  mental  train- 
ing  72 

Proposition  Number  Eleven  :  That  the  influence 
known  as  life  must  be  the  creator  and  controller  of 
the  universe.  Also  the  God,  the  Father,  the  Omnip- 
otent Power  we  worship  as  our  Lord  and  Master. 
We  know  of  no  other  supernatural  influence.         .     75 

Proposition  Number  Twelve:  That  man  should  take 
advantage  of  the  opportunities  Ufe  affords.  He 
then  would  never  have  reason  to  be  discontented, 
unhappy  and  unfortunate 79 

Proposition  Number  Thirteen  :  That  the  great  prob- 
lem of  mortal  existence  will  not  be  solved  until  we 
learn  why  man  was  created  with  a  super-mentality 
and  then  permitted  to  take  possession  of  the  world 
and  its  creations 82 

Proposition  Number  Fourteen  :  That  too  much  can- 
not be  said,  or  done,  to  convince  mankind  that  our 
religious  convictions  should  conform  to  actual  fact, 
concerning  the  creation  of  the  world  and  the  work- 
ings of  nature.  All  efforts  to  keep  up  a  belief  in 
incongruities  should  be  stopped 87 

Proposition  Number  Fifteen:  That  there  is  a  way 
to  avoid  becoming  the  slaves  of  an  animal  nature, 
and  of  the  evil  tendencies  handed  down  through 
ancestral  inheritance 91 


INDEX  TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

Proposition  Number  Sixteen:  That  man  was  en- 
dowed with  a  superior  mentality  for  the  purpose 
of  achieving  immortahty,  and  to  upbuild  the  wel- 
fare of  the  world. 95 

Proposition  Number  Seventeen  :  That  the  adage, 
"Man  proposes  and  God  disposes,"  should  be  re- 
versed to  read,  "God  proposes  and  man  disposes."     97 

Proposition  Number  Eighteen:  That  ability  to  do 
things,  to  accomplish  satisfactory  results,  to  bring 
about  successful  issues,  to  acquire  knowledge,  to 
learn  to  memorize  and  to  become  proficient  in  phys- 
ical feats  are  the  results  of  mental  training.         .  100 

Proposition  Number  Nineteen  :  That  the  most  laud- 
able ambition  to  which  a  man  or  woman  could 
aspire,  is  to  become  a  parent  of  healthy,  intellect- 
ual, moral  children,  with  vigorous,  active  men- 
talities  104 

Proposition  Number  Twenty  :  That  the  much  vaunt- 
ed statement  that  man  was  created  after  the  image 
of  God  must  be  a  mistake.  Man  is  an  animal,  and 
is  possessed  with  animal  proclivities.  What  man 
most  needs  is  mental  self -upbuilding.  He  may  then 
be  worthy  of  a  comparison  with  God.        .        .        .  107 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-one  :  That  mental  dis- 
tress and  cases  of  "nerves"  result  from  loss  of 
mental  control.  Right  thinking  and  right  doing  will 
banish  such  evils.  Fight  them  fearlessly  through 
the  medium  of  prayer.  That  is  the  panacea  for 
mental  ills HO 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-two  :  That  our  mental- 
ities are  not  like  sponges,  into  which  information 
and  knowledge  may  be  soaked,  and  then  squeezed 
out  when  needed;  nor  are  they  a  white  and  gray 


INDEX  TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

matter  actuated  supematurally,  one  for  the  intel- 
lect, and  the  other  for  physical  movements,  nor  are 
we  possessed  by  a  spiritual  influence  that  reappears 
after  we  have  passed  away,  as  ghosts,  auras,  or 
shadows  of  our  earthly  existence  as  individuals. 
Such  phenomena  are  creations  of  vivid  imagina- 
tions  114 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-three:  That  mankind 
generally  is  the  product  of  mental  training,  of 
mental  development,  should  be  understood  by  every 
person 117 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-four:  That  the  mind 
should  be  developed  and  upbuilded  by  careful 
methods  to  cause  it  to  become  strong,  vigorous, 
active  and  useful.  We  should  cultivate  our  minds 
and  free  them  from  harmful  tendencies,  in  the 
same  painstaking  manner  we  cultivate  other  ma- 
terial things  for  our  personal  needs.         .        .         .120 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-five  :  That  there  is  no 
logical  reason  why  man  should  be  baptized  or  sub- 
ject himself  to  any  form  of  church  ceremony,  or 
other  means  of  subscribing  to  articles  of  faith,  be- 
fore he  will  be  entitled  to  salvation.         .        .        .123 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-six  :  Stirring  up  the 
emotions  to  recruit  church  members  is  not  advis- 
able. Such  methods  of  inducing  people  to  reform 
their  sinful  ways  should  not  be  sanctioned  by  re- 
ligious organizations 126 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-seven  :  That  God,  not 
the  personal  God  we  worship,  but  the  real  God  of 
the  universe,  will  guide,  control  and  protect  us 
through  the  medium  of  the  germ  of  life  with  which 
mankind  is  endowed 129 


INDEX   TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-eight:  That  man 
should  endeavor  to  hasten  the  process  of  develop- 
ing his  mental  and  physical  health  and  vigor,  by 
abandoning  the  use  of  narcotics,  strong  drink,  to- 
bacco and  other  delete rients.  He  should  bear  in 
mind  that  both  mental  and  bodily  health  may  be 
derived  from  life,  or  that  a  lack  of  that  influence 
may  prove  to  be  his  undoing 133 

Proposition  Number  Twenty-nine:  That  church 
organizations,  sects  and  cults  should  advocate  prac- 
tical thought,  as  a  means  of  promoting  human 
welfare 136 

Proposition  Number  Thirty:  That  praying  for  the 
welfare  of  those  we  love,  or  for  people  in  distress 
and  in  need  of  assistance,  is  a  beautiful,  commend- 
able custom  that  deserves  to  be  perpetuated.  But 
it  is  like  praying  for  rain,  abundant  harvest, 
wealth,  honors,  or  anything  else  outside  of  our  own 
individual  activities.  The  prayers  will  not  be  ans- 
wered  139 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-one:  That  there  are 
several  very  good  reasons  why  modern  people  do 
not  become  enthusiastic  converts  to  the  Christian 
and  other  religious  organizations.         .         .         .  142 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-two:  That  the  use  of 
good  common  sense  is  essential  to  success  in  all 
undertakings,  and  as  that  attribute  is  a  creation  of 
mental  training,  strenuous  efforts  should  be  made 
to  secure  its  development 145 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-three:  That  man 
spends  too  much  of  his  time  in  wasting  mental 
effort  in  freaks  of  imagination,  or  when  indulging 
habits  that  result  in  mental  injury.         .         .         .148 


INDEX  TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-four:  That  Individ, 
ual  effort  is  needed  to  free  the  world  from  its 
misery  and  distress.  No  money,  no  universal  cam- 
paign is  necessary  to  bring  about  that  great  reform. 
It  may  be  accomplished  by  individual  self-regener- 
ation  151 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-five:  That  the  use  of 
the  divine  mind  in  christian  science  healing  is  a 
delusion.  Such  an  influence  purporting  to  come 
from  God  has  no  existence.  There  is  not  now,  and 
never  has  been,  a  divine  mind  subject  to  the  de- 
mands and  uses  of  humanity 154 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-six:  That  man  should 
learn  to  do  his  own  thinking,  and  not  allow  others 
to  control  and  influence  his  conduct,  frequently 
against  his  best  interests 158 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-seven:  That  man 
should  not  use  his  mentality  in  such  a  way  as  to 
cause  him  to  acquire  a  reputation  for  being  whim- 
sical or  impractical,  nor  employ  it  in  developing 
a  useless,  imaginative  disposition.         .         .         .  162 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-eight:  That  no  man  or 
woman  should  be  permitted  to  marry  who  is 
mentally  or  physically  deficient,  or  who  is  af- 
flicted with  a  disease  or  infirmity  that  may  be  in- 
herited  164 

Proposition  Number  Thirty-nine:  That  convicted 
criminals  should  never  be  permitted  to  return  to 
private  life,  until  they  have  been  afforded  oppor- 
tunity to  regenerate  their  mentalities,  and  be  in  a 
fit  condition  to  become  worthy  citizens.         .         .  167 


INDEX   TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

Proposition  Number  Forty:  That  the  mystery  con- 
cerning the  mental  development  of  certain  types  of 
genius,  and  of  young  prodigies,  may  be  explained 
by  looking  up  the  traits  of  character  of  their 
ancestors 170 

Proposition  Number  Forty-one  :  That  profanity,  the 
use  of  swear  words,  is  an  indication  of  a  foul,  un- 
couth mind,  and  its  use  should  be  abandoned.       .  174 

Proposition  Number  Forty-two:  That  human  love 
is  supreme  when  properly  developed,  and  that  it  is 
mankind's  chief  benefactor.  When  not  recipro- 
cated, love  becomes  a  distressing  torment.      .         .176 

Proposition  Number  Forty-three:  That  prayers  to 
saints  and  other  mortals,  who  have  departed  this 
life,  will  not  be  answered.  Only  individual  suppli- 
cations for  mental  and  physical  welfare  will  prove 
beneficial .  179 

Proposition  Number  Forty-four:  That  man  does 
much  to  prevent  the  enjoyment  of  a  long  life,  and 
the  full  use  of  his  mentality.         .  .       .         .  181 

Proposition  Number  Forty-five:  That  intuition, 
mental  instinct,  is  another  proof  that  man's  infor- 
mation and  knowledge  acquired  from  outside 
sources  are  attained  by  means  of  the  five  senses.     .  183 

Proposition  Number  Forty-six  :  That  the  mental  ac- 
tivity known  as  conscience  results  from  natural 
causes.  It  is  not  a  spiritual  monitor  that  warns  its 
possessor  of  his  wrong  doing  and  finally  becomes 
an  instrument  of  mental  torture  by  prompting 
thoughts  of  remorse  and  penitence.         .         .         .  185 

Proposition  Number  Forty-seven  :  That  seeing  spir- 
its, ghosts,  apparitions,  or  wraiths  of  deceased  rel- 
atives or  others  who  have  passed  out  of  mortal  life 
is  a  mental  delusion 188 


INDEX  TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

Proposition  Number  Forty-eight:  That  Christ  was 
the  greatest  Exemplar  of  the  prayer  method  of 
self -development,  and  His  example  should  be  strict- 
ly followed  by  all  persons  desirous  of  doing  right.  191 

Proposition  Number  Forty-nine:  That  deformed 
and  crippled  people  who  came  into  the  world  in 
that  condition  are  not  responsible  for  their  mis- 
fortunes, and  that  it  is  the  duty  of  every  person 
to  make  their  burdens  as  light  as  possible  by 
showing  them  attention,  and  by  assisting  them  to 
look  on  the  bright  side  of  life 195 

Proposition  Number  Fifty:  That  there  is  a  method 
of  regenerating  the  mentality  that  will  free  it  from 
the  control  of  bad  habits  and  cause  its  possessor  to 
recover  his  mental  strength  and  vigor.         .         .  198 

Proposition  Number  Fifty-one:  That  dreams  are 
mental  activities  not  under  good  control.  They 
are  meaningless  except  in  one  particular:  They 
indicate  disorders  in  one  or  more  of  our  digestive, 
circulatory,  or  respiratory  functions.         .         .       .  200 

Proposition  Number  Fifty-two:  That  all  prophecies 
and  predictions  not  based  on  mathematical  calcula- 
tions or  reliable,  first-hand  information  are  purely 
guess-work  and  waste  of  mental  energy.        .        .  203 

Proposition  Number  Fifty-three:  That  we  must 
banish  superstition  and  thoughts  of  attaining  im- 
mortality by  luck  or  chance,  and  resort  to  practical 
methods  and  efforts  to  prepare  ourselves  for  the 
great  unknown 206 

Proposition  Number  Fifty-four:  That  changes  are 
needed  in  the  creeds,  doctrines  and  declarations  of 
our  several  religious  organizations  to  enable  them 
to  regain  popular  favor  and  become  instruments 
of  greater  good 209 


INDEX  TO  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS 

Proposition  Number  Fifty-five:  That  two  well 
known  mental  forces,  hope  and  fear,  have  had 
much  to  do  with  releasing  mankind  from  the  thral- 
dom of  sin  and  wickedness.  The  hope  of  immor- 
tality as  a  reward  for  right  doing,  and  the  fear 
of  eternal  punishment  for  acts  of  wrong  doing, 
exercise  a  more  powerful  influence  for  human  re- 
demption than  pulpit  oratory.  That  we  must  look 
to  life  for  the  immortal  transcendency.  Life  is 
our  Creator  and  is  immortal  and  cannot  be  de- 
stroyed  213 

Finding  the  Real  God  : 

First  Part 221 

Second  Pare 228 


For  the  Good  of  the  World 
Finding  the  Real  God 

EXPLANATORY 

THE  propositions  presented  to  readers  in  this  volume 
are  not  published  for  the  purpose  of  attempting 
to  establish  a  new  form  of  religious  belief.  There 
are  too  many  methods  of  religious  worship  now  in  com- 
mon use  for  the  best  interests  of  humanity.  What  really 
is  needed  for  the  good  of  the  world  is  the  application  of 
practical  thought  to  the  consideration  of  rehgious  wor- 
ship, and  all  other  affairs  pertaining  to  public  and 
personal  weal.  It  would  be  contrary  to  the  dictates  of 
good  judgment  to  think  that  there  is  more  than  one  God, 
or  Supreme  Creator,  or  to  advocate  that  we  may  be 
transcended  to  immortality  for  any  other  reason  than 
that  of  purity  of  mind  and  thought.  It  would  be  next  to 
impossible  for  a  human  being  controlled  by  animal  ten- 
dencies and  proclivities  to  be  absolutely  free  from  wrong 
doing. 

Man  is  an  animal  belonging  to  the  vertebrate  species. 
He  procreates  and  exists  by  food  sustenance,  and  is  sub- 
ject to  all  of  the  changes  incident  to  animal  existence, 
and  must  necessarily  be  controlled  by  animal  tendencies. 

All  religious  creeds  and  doctrines,  past  and  present, 
are  products  of  the  human  mind.  They  are  the  result  of 
religious  training  acquired  during  the  countless  years  of 
uplift  that  have  elapsed  since  the  creation  of  prehistoric 
man.  It  would  be  impossible  to  estimate  the  many 
changes  of  religious  belief  during  that  period,  but  there 
have  been  over  three  hundred  different  kinds  of  religious 
creeds  and  doctrines  in  use  since  the  time  of  Christ. 


'ii: ''.:':  I  ,^Q'k-  tUe  good  of  the  world 

These  different  statements  of  religious  belief  are  off- 
shoots and  modifications  of  the  three  great  religions, 
Christianity,  Islam  and  Buddhism,  which  supply  relig- 
ious thought  and  comfort  to  at  least  two-thirds  of 
humanity.  Inasmuch  as  some  of  these  religious  declara- 
tions differ  radically  in  their  methods  and  theories  of 
worship,  and  as  these  differences  have  been  the  cause  of 
many  wars  and  much  distress  and  bloodshed,  there  could 
be  no  more  convincing  evidence  that  God  had  nothing  to 
do  with  their  fabulation,  and  that  they  are  exclusively 
the  handiwork  of  man.  Had  God  actually  handed  down 
a  form  of  religious  worship  to  mankind  there  would  now 
be  only  one  religious  belief  and  one  form  of  worship  in 
general  use.     That  would  be  God's  belief  and  worship. 

But  the  fact  that  God  is  not  the  creator  of  religious 
doctrines  and  creeds  does  not  signify  that  there  is  no 
God,  or  Creator.  Such  a  belief  or  claim  is  not  justifi- 
able, and  is  a  reprehensible  mistake.  A  study  of  the 
universe,  with  its  countless  worlds,  its  limitless,  incom- 
prehensible space,  and  its  marvelous  grandeur,  is  an  as- 
suring method  of  ascertaining  the  existence  of  a  Supreme 
Creator.  A  glance  into  the  heavens  at  night  where  the 
numberless  stars  twinkle  in  their  blanket  of  darkness, 
or  a  look  at  the  beauties  of  nature  with  its  diverse  and 
varied  forms  of  creative  life,  will  add  strength  to  the  con- 
viction that  God,  or  some  other  Supreme  Influence,  is 
our  Creator. 

There  is  no  authority  for  the  claim  that  God,  or  any 
other  supernatural  influence,  guides  or  controls  our  mor- 
tal destinies.  As  previously  stated,  man  is  an  animal  and 
his  activities,  mental  and  physical,  result  from  the  use  of 
cellular  functions.  There  is  nothing  spiritual,  phenomenal 
or  mysterious  about  the  manner  in  which  we  think,  ac- 
quire knowledge  and  information,  or  do  anything  within 
our  mental  ability.  All  vertebrate  animal  life  is  possessed 
with  the  five  senses,  touch,  taste,  smell,  sight  and  hear- 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  15 

ing.  In  addition  to  these  senses,  man  was  endowed  with 
a  sixth,  or  innate  sense,  which  enables  him  to  think, 
devise  and  invent,  acquire  information  and  knowledge, 
memorize,  seek  immortality  and  do  other  remarkable 
things.  It  is  by  the  use  of  these  senses  that  we  develop 
and  upbuild  our  mentalities.  Watch  the  growth  and 
development  of  a  newly  born  infant  to  mature  life,  and 
it  will  be  seen  that  all  information  and  knowledge  are 
acquired  by  the  use  of  the  six  senses,  except  that  in- 
herited from  ancestors  and  handed  down  through  the 
cells  of  the  brain  organ.  Mental  training  by  study,  ob- 
servation, thought,  inheritance,  experience,  and  other 
uses  of  the  mentality  is  the  result  of  brain  and  nerve  cell 
development.  Cellular  force,  mental  energy,  is  acquired 
by  the  constant  and  persistent  use  of  the  mind.  The  cells 
are  actuated  and  made  useful  by  thought  concentration, 
or  to  be  more  explicit,  by  the  use  of  the  sixth  sense.  No 
outside  or  extraneous  influence  will  actuate  brain  and 
nerve  cells.  For  that  reason  there  could  be  no  mind 
reading,  telepathy,  mental  healing  by  other  persons,  or 
by  the  divine  mind. 

Mental  training  means  the  development  of  the  mind 
for  one  of  two  uses,  either  for  right,  or  for  wrong  doing. 
All  of  our  thoughts,  impulses,  acts  and  deeds  are  the 
products  of  brain  and  nerve  cell  activity.  The  ability 
to  create  thought  and  to  perform  acts  and  deeds  results 
from  the  practice  of  mental  training.  Any  thought,  act 
or  deed  for  right  doing  adds  strength  to  the  mind,  creates 
mental  vigor  and  promotes  personal  and  public  good. 
Thoughts  and  deeds  for  wrong  doing  have  a  contrary 
effect.  Right  doing  creates  and  upbuilds.  Wrong  doing 
harms  and  destroys.  Thoughts  of  right  doing  inspire 
acts  and  deeds  that  create  health,  happiness  and  pros- 
perity. Thoughts  of  wrong  doing  mar  personal  comfort, 
prevent  mental  upbuilding,  and  prompt  acts  and  deeds 
that  inflict  injury  to  self  and  to  others. 


16       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

The  mentality  measures  the  man  and  announces  both 
his  worth  and  unworthiness.  Mental  training  is  either 
the  cause  of  our  upbuilding,  or  of  our  downfall.  Our 
minds  are  developed  for  good  or  for  evil  purposes  by 
experience,  study,  observation  and  the  acquirement  of 
information  and  knowledge  as  we  pass  through  life. 
There  positively  is  no  other  means  of  mental  training, 
or  of  receiving  mental  development.  That  development 
is  due  to  the  enlivening,  strengthening  and  energizing 
of  brain  and  nerve  cells  actuated  by  our  own  mental 
efforts.  The  brain  organ,  which  is  the  seat  of  mental 
energy,  is  an  ancestral  inheritance.  Life,  energy,  en- 
durance, health,  ability  to  think  and  act,  power  to  per- 
form, and  the  control  of  mental  and  physical  functions 
are  all  creatures  of  brain  and  nerve  cell  activities.  We 
do  what  mental  effort  dictates,  and  are  either  beneficiaries 
or  victims  of  our  own  mental  training.  The  mentality 
creates  thought,  and  thoughts  prompt  deeds.  As  we  think, 
so  will  we  act. 

The  importance  of  mental  training  for  right  doing 
must  be  apparent.  There  is  no  source  from  which  to 
receive  guidance  of  thought  or  deed,  except  from  our 
own  mentalities.  Their  activities  give  us  life,  comfort, 
happiness,  ability  and  all  else  that  is  good  and  beneficial, 
when  properly  developed.  The  popular  belief  that  God 
inspires,  controls  and  protects  humanity  is  a  grave,  seri- 
ous and  misleading  mistake.  We  are  creatures  of  our 
own  mental  activities,  solely  and  entirely.  There  is  no 
extraneous  influence,  divine,  supernatural,  or  otherwise 
to  guide,  protect  and  control  us.  As  children  of  nature, 
we  are  subject  to  the  incidents  and  vicissitudes  of  natural 
laws.  These  laws  are  inexorable.  Not  even  God,  the 
Creator,  intervenes  to  change,  alter  or  stay  their  pro- 
cesses. Man  or  mountain,  forest  or  flower,  world  or 
worm,  and  all  else  creative  must  come  and  go  in  accord- 
ance with  its  ability  to  resist  the  buffets  of  nature.  There 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  17 

has  never  been,  and  could  not  now  be,  divine  interference 
with  this  immutable,  unchangeable  creative  condition. 
The  only  hope  man  has  of  being  salvaged  from  nature's 
scheme  of  upgrowth  and  destruction,  of  continuous  re- 
building and  downfall,  rests  in  the  endowment  of  his 
superior  mentality. 

The  prevailing  religious  belief  holds  that  man  was 
created  after  the  image  of  God,  and  therefore  is  eligible 
to  salvation.  That  may  be  true,  but  the  claim  cannot 
be  substantiated.  We  do  not  know  God,  nor  do  we 
understand  that  He  is  a  personal  God,  or  a  creative 
Influence.  The  bible,  sacred  in  the  minds  of  worship- 
pers, describes  the  majesty  and  grandeur  of  God,  and 
states  that  Moses,  and  others  of  the  biblical  prophets, 
received  communications  from  Him.  Miracles  and  simi- 
lar divine  manifestations  are  mentioned  in  the  bible, 
and  among  them  is  the  immaculate  conception  and  birth 
of  Christ,  the  son  of  God.  Other  religious  beliefs  that 
differ  with  Christianity  in  doctrine,  theory,  and  practice, 
also  have  their  prophets,  patriarchs  and  miracle  workers. 
But  all  of  these  religious  incidents  and  events  are  of  an 
age  long  since  past.  They  happened  at  a  time  when 
there  was  no  reliable  means  of  preserving  fact  and  truth 
concerning  that  age.  Since  then  there  has  been  great 
progress  made  in  the  development  of  the  human  mind, 
as  well  as  in  other  earthly  affairs.  Events  that  were 
looked  upon  as  miracles  in  bible  days  are  no  longer  re- 
garded as  supernatural.  Wireless  messages  are  now 
plucked  from  the  air.  Cylinders  of  wax  and  composite 
circular  plates  are  made  to  talk.  Huge,  heavy  machines 
propel  themselves  above  the  clouds.  Conveyances  speed 
over  the  roads  without  the  use  of  man  or  animal  power. 
People  talk  over  a  wire  at  distances  of  thousands,  or 
less,  of  miles.  Human  beings  are  restored  to  life  after 
having  apparently  met  death  by  drowning,  asphyxiation 
and  other  causes.     Sight  is  frequently  restored  to  per- 


18       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

sons  who  have  lost  the  use  of  their  eyes,  and  similar 
man-miracles  are  of  common  occurrence.  These  and 
other  phenomena  are  the  results  of  mental  development, 
of  mental  training.  They  no  longer  excite  wonder,  or 
are  attributed  to  a  divine  source,  although  they  are  as 
marvelous  in  exeqution  and  importance  as  were  the 
miracle  happenings  described  in  the  bible.  The  truth 
may  not  always  be  found  in  religious  doctrines  and 
teachings,  because  they  are  invariably  the  work  of  man. 
The  human  mind  is  not  reliable.  Man's  conclusions  are 
sometimes  incorrect. 

A  mentality  may  be  developed  and  largely  purified  of 
its  animal  propensities,  but  it  can  never  receive,  or  be 
subject  to  divine  inspiration,  or  other  extraneous  influ- 
ences. The  Creator,  in  His  construction  of  the  brain 
organ  and  its  uses,  has  provided  against  such  a  possibility. 
Brain  and  nerve  cells  are  immune  to  any  but  individual 
endeavor.  They  cannot  be  actuated,  energized  or  made 
use  of  except  by  the  personal  effort  of  their  possessor. 
Were  this  not  true,  God  would  inspire  us  with  ability 
and  strength  to  do  right  in  all  of  our  undertakings.  He 
would  fill  our  minds  with  thoughts  and  desires  that 
would  cause  us  to  be  happy  and  contented.  He  would 
abolish  disease  and  wrong  doing,  and  inaugurate  an  era 
of  peace  and  good  will  on  earth,  or  elsewhere  in  His 
realms.  Read  your  bible  and  decide  if  that  would  not 
be  the  work  of  a  good,  just  and  merciful  God,  had  He 
the  power  to  do  so.  Better  yet,  would  a  good,  just  and 
merciful  God  have  created  mortals  after  his  own  image 
who  would  be  susceptible  to  all  of  the  sins,  temptations, 
wickedness  and  other  wrong  doing  incident  to  human 
life? 

The  entire  human  mental  structure  is  permeated  with 
misbelief,  false  theories,  incorrect  understanding  of  crea- 
tive existence,  blind  faith  in  doctrinal  teachings,  inherited 
superstitions,  professional  humbug,  and  an   unbounded 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  19 

desire  to  worship  and  be  guided  by  a  personal  God. 
Trusting  to  luck  in  everything  but  earning  an  honest 
livelihood  is  a  common  practice.  Depending  upon  chance 
for  our  mental  reformation  is  a  rule  and  not  an  exception. 
Necessity  compels  us  to  be  practical,  studious,  persistent 
and  energetic  if  we  would  succeed  in  business  or  profes- 
sional pursuits.  But  when  it  comes  to  purging  our  minds 
of  harmful  influences,  we  are  prone  to  refer  the  task  to 
our  spiritual  advisers.  Practical  religious  thought  does 
not  interest  us.  The  solution  of  such  problems  is  left 
to  persons  whose  mental  training  has  been  narrowed 
down  to  some  particular  religious  theory  or  doctrine. 
So  indifferent  and  neglectful  are  we  of  our  own  freedom 
of  thought  on  the  vital  question  of  mental  upbuilding  for 
right  doing,  that  we  are  willing,  and  frequently  eager,  to 
be  deceived  by  christian  science,  new  thought,  spirit- 
ualism, telepathy,  mind  reading  and  other  semi-religious 
theories  that  are  constantly  being  concocted  and  advo- 
cated. Not  one  of  these  alleged  divine  manifestations  is 
possible  under  existing  conditions.  Thought  cannot  be 
read  or  transferred,  except  through  the  use  of  the  five 
senses.  Thought  is  safely  housed  in  the  brain  organ, 
where  it  may  only  be  awakened  by  cellular  activity.  That 
activity  results  from  personal,  individual  endeavor.  There 
is  no  deviation  from  this  fixed  and  unalterable  rule. 
Human  beings  are  alike  in  physical  make-up.  Brain 
organs  are  inherited  functions.  Their  cellular  develop- 
ments may  differ,  but  their  uses,  energizing  and  actuat- 
ing are  subject  to  the  same  process.  The  mental  effort 
of  one  individual  cannot  pass  to  another.  Deception  is  the 
name  of  everything  that  advocates  differently. 

Humanity  needs  more  practical  thought  in  the  consid- 
eration of  religious  and  divine  subjects.  Man  stands 
solely  as  a  creature  of  nature,  and  is  absolutely  without 
divine  protection  and  guidance  from  extraneous  sources. 
He    was    endowed    with    a    superior    mentality,    which 


20       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

affords  him  strength  and  ability  to  care  for  himself  and 
those  dependent  on  him.  Therefore,  man  should  apply 
his  thought  and  mental  ability  to  the  solution  of  life's 
problems,  and  not  rely  on  theoretical  and  doctrinal  fal- 
lacies for  moral  and  physical  support.  The  first  and 
most  important  principle  to  be  adopted  and  adhered  to 
in  the  mental  practice  of  self-reliance,  is  the  truth  and 
fact  that  there  is  no  divine  protection  in  mortal  life.  We 
are  taught  that  God  is  good,  just,  merciful  and  forgiving, 
but  there  is  no  indication  of  His  ability  to  grant  these 
benefactions  to  mankind.  Look  at  the  numberless  hor- 
rors and  tragedies  that  have  beset  humanity  since  the 
beginning,  and  then  decide  if  there  is  proof  of  God's 
mercy,  love  and  protection.  These  countless  deeds  of 
violence,  bloodshed  and  destruction  have  reached  the 
innocent  as  v^ell  as  the  guilty,  and  the  claim  cannot  be 
upheld  that  they  were  inflicted  as  punishment.  As  fur- 
ther proof  that  God  does  not  protect  and  guide  His 
mortal  children,  witness  the  calamities,  horrors,  scourges 
and  other  great  and  lamentable  occurrences  which  are 
constantly  taking  place  throughout  the  world.  Nothing 
has  ever  been  done,  except  by  the  hand  of  man,  to 
prevent  these  horrible  disasters,  or  to  alleviate  the  sor- 
rows and  suffering  they  have  brought  on  humanity. 
Accept  the  truth,  bitter  and  objectionable  as  it  may  seem. 
God  does  not  personally  guide,  control,  interfere  or 
intervene  in  mankind's  affairs. 

Much  has  been  said  within  the  last  few  years  about 
the  influence  of  the  divine  mind  in  healing  disease,  and 
in  ameliorating  human  and  other  distress.  This  new 
theory  is  apparently  a  side  issue  of  Christianity,  and  is 
alleged  to  be  a  revival  of  the  healing  method  practiced 
by  Christ.  We  must  then  presume  that  the  divine  mind 
is  the  function  of  a  personal  God.  If  there  is  a  personal 
God,  there  possibly  is  a  divine  mind,  but  where  is  that 
God,  and  what  is  the  cause  of  His  existence?   A  divine 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  21 

mind  should  be  used  for  other  purposes  than  the  healing 
of  human  diseases  at  so  much  per  head.  As  a  matter 
of  fact  there  is  no  divine  mind,  no  divine  cellular  activity 
similar  to  the  one  that  prompts  human  thoughts  and 
deeds.  An  influence  powerful  enough  to  create,  guide 
and  control  the  universe  would  be  far  above  and  beyond 
mortal  comprehension.  Its  activities  would  not  be  con- 
fined to  healing  diseases,  nor  would  they  be  limited  to 
the  use  of  licensed  healers. 

The  fiction  of  a  divine  mind  is  doubtless  due  to  the 
mystery  connected  with  the  origin,  energizing  and  uses 
of  human  thought.  Man  as  well  as  most  other  animals 
of  land  life  is  possessed  with  developed  ability  to  utter 
sound  in  a  greater  or  less  degree.  The  extent  and  charac- 
ter of  these  utterances  depend  largely  on  the  uses  to  be 
made  of  the  sound.  There  probably  is  no  thought  con- 
nected with  the  utterance  of  sound  by  the  lower  orders 
of  animal  life.  Instinct  doubtless  prompts  the  utterances 
to  be  used  as  warnings,  calls,  songs,  trills,  chirpings 
and  other  signals  that  necessity  may  demand.  The  in- 
stinct to  make  use  of  these  varied  sounds  or  utterances 
passes  to  progeny  through  the  process  of  procreation. 
Man  was  endowed  with  greater  brain  cellular  force  and 
therefore  is  possessed  with  stronger  and  more  capable 
mental  ability.  His  power  to  energize  and  control 
thought  is  an  inherited  function,  but  it  must  be  developed 
and  made  useful  by  a  system  of  mental  training.  Man's 
brain  cellular  functions  have  been  gradually  and  slowly 
created  and  upbuilded  during  the  long  and  undetermined 
period  of  his  existence.  This  gain  in  mental  strength 
has  been  transferred  by  heritage  to  succeeding  genera- 
tions, each  successive  generation  being  benefited  accord- 
ingly. Thought  and  the  ability  to  use  it  is  an  inherited 
function,  but  it  must  be  developed  before  it  becomes 
useful.  Man  also  inherits  power  of  speech,  together 
with  his  vocal  organs.   The  ability  of  man  to  think  and 


22       FOR   THE   GOOD    OF   THE    WORLD 

talk  passes  from  parent  to  child.  The  bird  inherits  its 
song  trills,  the  dog  its  bark,  the  coyote  its  howl,  the  lion 
its  roar,  and  the  horse  its  whinny.  In  fact,  life  itself 
with  its  vicissitudes  is  an  inheritance.  Everything  with 
creative  existence  lives  its  life  over  and  over,  carrying 
to  each  successive  generation  the  development  or  deca- 
dence incident  to  the  previous  existence.  In  that  way  the 
world  and  its  habitants  are  upbuilded  or  destroyed  dur- 
ing the  lapse  of  time. 

The  divine  mind  is  not  instrumental  in  sustaining  life 
or  in  healing  disease,  because  there  is  no  such  influence. 
Any  effort  that  will  induce  thought  to  expel  from 
the  mind  harmful  impressions  will  have  a  beneficial 
effect  on  the  person  thus  influenced.  Mental  healing 
will  prove  to  be  a  reality  to  individuals  attempting  to 
heal  themselves.  Good  thought  has  a  salutary  effect. 
But  it  is  always  better  to  consult  a  doctor  familiar  with 
human  physical  ailments  before  taking  chances  on  cures 
that  may  not  be  effected  by  imaginary  influences. 

In  these  criticisms  of  semi-religious  shams  and  mis- 
representations, let  it  be  understood  that  there  is  no 
desire  to  cast  reflections  on  bona-fide  efforts  to  uplift 
human  thought.  The  easiest  way  to  upbuild  the  mind 
is  to  cause  it  to  drop  religious  and  other  practices  that 
promote  misbelief  and  false  theories.  Church  worship 
should  be  sincere  and  truthful  before  it  will  arrive  at 
the  fullest  extent  of  its  usefulness.  Blind  faith  in  bible 
stories  which  have  been  disproved  by  scientific  research 
will  never  upbuild  morality  and  create  better  men  and 
women.  Every  legitimate,  worthy  attempt  to  advocate 
truth  and  uprightness  should  be  encouraged  and  made 
beneficial.  Public  meetings  held  for  the  purpose  of 
educating  people  to  cast  off  the  bondage  of  sin,  deceit 
and  wrong  doing  should  become  a  fixture  in  our  daily 
routine  of  life.  But  how  could  such  meetings  become 
popular  when  pulpit  declarations  are  made  that  the  world 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  23 

was  created  in  six  days,  that  no  person  may  be  saved  who 
does  not  accept  the  blood  atonement,  and  that  every 
word  in  the  bible  is  God's  truth?  These  and  other  mis- 
leading statements  may  be  heard  in  almost  any  pulpit 
address.  Blind  faith  in  God's  intervention  has  never 
stopped  the  ravages  of  pestilence,  prevented  a  flood  or 
an  earthquake,  caused  the  cessation  of  a  war,  or  saved 
mankind  from  the  horrors  that  have  beset  the  world. 
Blind  faith  in  God's  help  has  never  built  a  house,  ploughed 
a  field  or  opened  the  way  to  prosperity.  Blind  faith  in 
false  theories  is  not  an  attribute  to  be  cherished  and 
relied  upon.  Blind  faith  in  any  religious  declaration  will 
not  guide  its  victim  to  immortality  and  leave  believers 
in  truth  and  fact  by  the  wayside.  Blind  faith  in  any  one 
particular  religion  to  the  exclusion  of  others  indicates  a 
lack  of  practical  thought,  good  judgment  and  respect  for 
the  religious  convictions  of  those  who  differ  in  their 
methods  of  worship. 

Seeking  transcendency  from  mortal  life  is  an  important 
undertaking,  which  should  be  treated  with  the  same  care- 
ful, practical  thought  with  which  we  consider  business 
propositions.  No  mortal  has  ever  been  endowed  with 
power  to  grant  to  others  absolution  from  sin  and  wrong 
doing,  and  as  individuals  we  must  solve  that  problem 
and  find  our  own  way  to  immortality.  Church  member- 
ship and  worship  provide  excellent  and  commendable 
methods  for  subduing  sinful  tendencies  and  inclinations, 
and  every  form  of  religious  belief  that  has  for  its  pur- 
pose the  salvation  of  man  is  entitled  to  freedom  of 
thought  and  unlimited  opportunity  for  worship.  But  it 
should  be  understood  that  all  doctrines,  creeds,  and 
religious  declarations  are  solely  and  entirely  the  work 
of  man.  They  are  creations  of  the  human  mind  and  do 
not  emanate  from  a  divine  source.  There  should  be  no 
difficulty  in  selecting  a  satisfactory  form  of  religious 
belief  by  those  desirous  of  abandoning  habits  and  ten- 


24       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

dencies  that  lead  to  wrong  doing.  Any  religion  that 
has  for  its  object  the  promotion  of  human  welfare  will 
prove  to  be  the  proper  selection. 

In  this  day  of  intellectual  enlightenment  nearly  every 
sane,  well  informed  person  has  deeply  implanted  in  his 
mind  a  strong  desire  to  become  worthy  of  a  future  life. 
That  desire  is  the  seed  from  which  immortality  may  be 
grown.  All  that  is  required  to  develop  and  strengthen 
that  desire,  and  cause  it  to  become  the  controlling  in- 
fluence of  the  mind,  is  to  cultivate  it  by  means  of  prayer- 
ful mental  effort.  That  statement  explains  the  theory 
and  practice  of  mental  regeneration.  As  previously  stated 
there  can  be  but  two  controls  of  the  human  mind.  One 
control  prompts  every  act,  thought,  impulse  and  deed 
for  right  doing.  The  other  control  causes  us  to  do  wrong 
in  thought,  act  and  deed.  These  two  opposing  mental 
influences,  or  controls,  are  the  source  of  our  happiness 
and  sorrows,  of  our  good  fortune  and  of  our  distress, 
of  our  worthiness  and  of  our  sinfulness.  They  are  con- 
stantly prompting  thoughts,  acts,  impulses  and  deeds; 
and  the  influence,  or  control,  that  eventually  becomes  the 
stronger  is  the  one  that  will  make  up  our  final  life  record. 
We  do  right,  or  wrong,  according  to  our  mental  prompt- 
ings. We  are  slaves  to  the  demands  of  our  mentalities. 
Mental  desires  for  right  or  for  wrong  doing  are  our 
inexorable  masters,  and  frequent  submission  to  the  in- 
fluence of  these  desires  will  cause  them  to  become  habits 
which  will  either  upbuild  or  wreck  our  lives.  Prompt- 
ings, desires  and  habits  are  creatures  of  our  brain  and 
nerve  cell  activities.  Thoughts,  impulses,  acts  and  deeds 
come  from  this  same  source.  It  may  truly  be  said  that 
the  fountain  head  of  our  existence  can  be  found  in  the 
brain  organ.  That  function  not  only  supplies  our  mental 
activities,  but  it  also  keeps  our  circulative,  respirative 
and  digestive  systems  in  operation. 

Mental  strength  to  do  right,  or  wrong,  in  all  their 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  25 

volume  and  degrees  of  activity,  is  acquired  by  energizing 
and  actuating  the  cells  and  nerves  of  the  brain  organ. 
Mental  force  to  energize  these  cells  results  from  the  use 
of  the  six  senses.  Mental  ability  is  the  sum  and  substance 
of  what  we  are  able  to  do  with  our  minds,  or  mentalities, 
and  through  its  use  we  will  succeed  in  overcoming  ten- 
dencies and  inclinations  for  wrong  doing  by  exerting 
proper  mental  effort  to  do  so.  When  cellular  activities 
for  wrong  doing  dominate  and  control  the  mentality,  it 
will  be  necessary  to  change  that  control  by  developing 
and  strengthening  cells  for  right  doing,  that  they  may 
subjugate  and  render  the  objectionable  cells  inoperative 
and  harmless.  The  desire  for  wrong  doing  must  be  over- 
come by  upbuilding  a  stronger  desire  for  right  doing. 
That  means  a  change  of  mental  control  for  self-better- 
ment. This  change  may  be  accomplished  by  causing  the 
cellular  influence  for  right  doing  to  supplant  the  control 
of  the  cellular  activities  for  wrong  doing.  When  the 
change  of  mental  control  is  made,  all  desires  for  wrong 
doing  will  cease.  This  mental  regeneration  is  wholly 
and  completely  a  physical  process.  It  is  nothing  more, 
or  less,  than  the  changing  of  mental  control  by  develop- 
ing and  strengthening  one  set  of  brain  cells  to  subjugate 
the  cellular  influence  of  another  set. 

Mental  regeneration,  or  reformation,  is  distinctly  a  one- 
man  task.  The  individual  striving  to  bring  about  the 
regeneration  must  necessarily  develop  and  actuate  his 
own  brain  cells.  That  mental  effort  cannot  be  relegated 
to  another  person.  We  may  be  advised  how  to  live,  act 
and  think  in  order  to  facilitate  the  operation  of  mental 
regeneration,  but  we  cannot  receive  actual  relief,  or  abso- 
lution from  the  results  of  our  own  individual  wrong 
doing  from  a  supernatural  or  other  source.  As  individ- 
uals, we  must  travel  along  life's  pathway  receiving  only 
such  assistance,  relief  and  comfort  as  may  be  had  by 
natural  means  and  methods.    We  belong  to  nature,  and 


26       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

are  in  no  way  connected  or  associated  with  the  super- 
natural, and  so  far  as  our  existence  is  concerned  we  are 
no  different  from  other  earthly  creatures.  Our  pro- 
creation, birth,  growth,  development,  demise  and  deca- 
dence are  in  accordance  with  natural  laws.  That  is 
precisely  the  earthly  experience  of  all  forms  of  creative 
life.  Because  we  are  possessed  with  superior  brain  cellu- 
lar ability  does  not  entitle  us  to  the  belief  that  we  belong 
to  a  species  especially  under  the  control  and  guidance 
of  a  divine  influence.  Whatever  supernatural  or  un- 
known ability  we  exercise  is  innate,  and  is  a  part  of  our 
own  individual  nature.  It  is  an  endowment  that  places 
us  on  the  highest  level  of  animal  existence,  but  this 
superior  mental  ability  does  not  exempt  us  from  the 
changes,  incidents  and  vicissitudes  that  beset  all  earthly 
creations. 

There  is  this  hope,  which  may  meet  with  fruition  and 
entitle  us  to  immortality.  If  the  innate  mental  ability 
with  which  we  are  possessed  can  be  developed  to  such 
an  extent  as  to  overcome  our  bestial  natures,  and  free 
us  from  tendencies  and  inclinations  for  wrong  doing, 
there  is  good  reason  to  believe  that  we  will  be  worthy  of 
transcendency  after  mortality.  Worthy  or  unworthy  of 
an  immortal  future,  there  is  consolation  in  knowing  that 
a  life  of  well  doing  brings  its  own  reward.  Happiness, 
contentment,  good  health,  freedom  from  mental  distress, 
and  an  ability  to  prosper  and  be  serviceable  in  promoting 
public  welfare  are  surely  worth  seeking.  They  are  within 
the  mental  grasp  of  every  person  willing  to  make  the 
effort  to  attain  them.  The  method  of  securing  such 
valuable  means  of  earthly  enjoyment  is  simple,  practical 
and  worth  trying. 

Mental  effort  is  all  that  is  required  to  convert  the  self- 
evident  sinner  into  a  self-respecting  mortal.  The  task 
will  be  difficult,  protracted  and  frequently  disappointing, 
but  time,  patience  and  persistent  endeavor  will  success- 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  27 

fully  bring  about  the  change.  The  way  to  overcome  a 
mental  influence  for  wrong  doing  has  already  been  ex- 
plained. The  means  to  be  employed  in  performing  that 
duty  is  found  in  the  use  of  devout,  earnest,  sincere  prayer. 
The  prayer  should  be  addressed  to  Life,  although  the 
title  of  God,  Our  Father,  Christ,  or  Our  Divine  Protector, 
may  be  used  and  accomplish  the  same  result.  Life  should 
be  the  preference,  because  that  influence  gives  us 
strength  and  ability  to  actuate  and  develop  brain  cellular 
strength  to  overcome  tendencies  for  wrong  doing.  Life 
is  a  local  function  in  all  living,  earthly  creations,  and  its 
power  to  cause  existence  is  confined  to  the  object  of  its 
beneficence.  Life  does  not  permeate  the  air,  or  float 
around  loosely  ready  to  enliven  a  new  creation.  But  it 
causes  the  existence  of  everything  capable  of  animate 
existence,  and  is  communicated  to  successive  reproduc- 
tions and  procreations  by  methods  known  to  every 
person. 

One  significant  reason  why  we  should  invoke  life 
to  give  us  strength  to  do  right,  to  see  the  right,  to  feel 
the  right,  to  know  the  right,  to  think  right  and  to  live 
right  is  that  the  impregnated  germ  of  mortal  life  was 
the  cause  of  our  individual  creation,  and  without  that  life 
our  existence  would  cease.  Vigorous  life  affords  us 
health,  strength,  activity  and  energy  to  make  ourselves 
useful  and  worthy.  And  as  the  mentality  is  the  fountain 
head  of  our  mental  and  physical  activities  it  would  seem 
practical  to  use  it  in  imploring  Life,  our  Creator,  for 
greater  strength  and  ability  to  make  creditable  use  of 
His  benefaction.  When  through  the  process  of  procrea- 
tion we  were  endowed  with  life,  we  also  received  our 
mental  and  physical  functions  in  an  undeveloped  state. 
Our  forms,  features,  brain  organs,  senses,  and  all  else 
within  our  beings,  that  we  now  possess,  were  embodied 
for  future  development  in  that  procreative  germ.  The 
birth  that  brought  us  into  existence,  also  ushered  us 


28       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

into  the  world  as  living  units  of  humanity.  From  that 
moment  we  became  creatures  of  an  independent,  individ- 
ual existence,  subject  to  no  power  or  influence  not  found 
in  nature. 

Life  was  inherited,  as  were  all  mental  and  physical 
functions,  and  by  the  use  of  that  inheritance  we  develop 
and  upbuild  ability  to  think,  acquire  knowledge  and  in- 
formation, move,  act  and  do  everything  we  learn  to  do. 
The  power  to  do  right,  or  wrong,  is  a  part  of  that  inherit- 
ance, and  for  that  reason  life  impels  all  of  our  activities, 
good,  indiflFerent  or  otherwise,  and  the  brain  cellular 
functions  supply  the  motor  energy  which  actuates  and 
controls  our  every  act,  thought  and  deed.  Should  any 
cellular  or  physical  function  be  weakened  by  misuse,  dis- 
sipation, excess,  or  disease,  the  ability  of  life  to  energize 
that  particular  function  by  means  of  the  mentality  will 
be  lessened.  These  facts  are  familiar  to  readers,  but  the 
point  to  be  made,  in  this  argument,  is  that  life  is  our 
creative  agent,  also  the  promoter  of  our  existence,  and 
while  remedies  may  be  taken  to  alleviate  pain  and  dis- 
tress, and  to  check  the  ravages  of  diseases,  we  must  in- 
evitably look  to  life  for  strength,  health,  comfort  and 
ability  to  prosper.  Life  keeps  our  mental  engine  active, 
and  that  engine  supplies  energy  to  upbuild  mental  and 
physical  strength. 

The  necessity  for  developing  mental  strength  to  do 
right  must  be  apparent.  Brain  cellular  developments  for 
right  doing  do  not  inflict  injury  through  the  use  of  their 
activities.  They  do  not  prompt  thoughts  and  deeds  that 
cause  mental  and  physical  decadence.  They  do  not  cause 
their  possessors  to  do  wrong  to  others.  Their  influence 
is  for  upbuilding  and  promoting  personal  and  public 
welfare.  Brain  cellular  energy  that  prompts  and  causes 
wrong  doing  is  destructive  both  to  its  possessors  and  to 
everything  with  which  it  comes  in  contact.  Evil  thoughts 
prompt  evil  deeds.  Acts  and  deeds  that  create  bad  habits 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  29 

destroy  health  and  happiness.  They  also  work  injury 
to  others,  and  bring  distress  to  the  world.  The  panacea 
for  all  evil  rests  in  individual  reformation,  in  brain  and 
nerve  cell  regeneration.  Good  health,  strong  mental 
energy,  ability  to  accomplish,  to  be  happy  and  contented, 
and  to  procreate  strong,  healthy  progeny,  depend  en- 
tirely upon  the  possession  of  well  and  rightly  developed 
mentalities.  Not  mentalities  that  are  erratic,  or  show 
indications  of  a  one-sided  development,  but  mentalities 
that  are  in  a  normal  condition  and  which  are  energized 
by  vigorous  life. 

The  use  of  prayer  to  upbuild  and  energize  the  mind 
is  in  itself  a  study.  Prayers  for  others,  or  for  pubHc  weal, 
will  not  prove  effective.  Each  and  every  person  is  a  unit 
within  himself,  and  has  no  means  of  communicating  by 
word,  thought,  or  deed  with  another  person,  except  by 
use  of  the  five  senses.  There  is  no  divine  mind  by  which 
prayers  or  communications  may  be  circulated.  There  is 
no  personal  God,  with  power  to  control  either  the  ele- 
ments or  the  activities  of  man.  The  steadfast,  continu- 
ous neglect  of  God  to  protect  mankind  from  dangers  and 
perils,  and  His  failure  to  guide  us  into  ways  of  peace 
and  good  will,  should  put  an  end  to  such  a  belief.  The 
mentality,  the  creator  of  both  our  weal  and  our  woe, 
was  given  to  man  for  his  protection  and  with  which  to 
work  out  his  own  salvation.  That  brain  organ  with  its 
countless  cells,  from  which  mental  ability  emanates,  is 
like  a  sealed  book  so  far  as  its  knowledge  is  concerned. 
A  mind  cannot  be  read  or  influenced  from  outside  sources. 
All  thought  and  suggestion  must  necessarily  reach  the 
brain  cells  through  the  use  of  the  senses.  The  method 
of  instructing  deaf,  dumb  and  blind  people  ought  to 
convince  investigators  of  that  fact. 

Earnest,  sincere  prayer,  well  considered,  and  uttered 
in  seclusion  and  alone,  will  influence  and  strengthen  the 
mind.    The  object  of  prayer  is  to  solicit  protection  and 


30       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

guidance.  Usually  this  influence  is  expected  from  a 
divine  source.  That  could  not  be  possible,  but  men- 
tal strength  may  be  upbuilded  that  will  prove  both  a 
guide  and  a  protector.  Care  must  be  taken  to  pre- 
vent the  upbuilding  for  wrong  purposes.  Prayer  is 
a  mental  effort,  and  it  may  be  an  appeal  for  mental 
strength  for  wrong  doing.  Strength  to  do  right,  to 
see  tne  right,  to  know  the  right,  to  think  right  and  to 
live  right  should  be  invoked.  Appeals  for  strength  to 
be  sincere,  honest  and  truthful  also  are  recommended. 
These  suggestions  should  represent  the  full  intent  of  the 
implorations.  No  other  supplications  are  essential.  The 
prayer  should  be  repeated  as  often  as  practical,  not 
loudly  or  with  vehemence,  but  sincerely,  thoughtfully, 
and  with  as  much  earnestness  as  is  possible  to  put  into 
language.  The  purpose  of  the  prayer  is  to  enliven  the 
mentality,  and  upbuild  a  never  ceasing  desire  to  do  right 
in  thought  and  deed.  That  desire  should  displace  mental 
promptings  for  wrong  doing,  and  at  the  same  time  stop 
brain  cell  activities  that  cause  ill  health,  and  mental  and 
physical  decadence.  Praying  new  cellular  energy  into 
the  mentality  is  a  slow  and  sometimes  a  discouraging 
duty,  but  it  is  a  sure  cure,  if  persisted  in,  for  bad  habits, 
and  other  tendencies  that  cause  wrong  doing.  The  change 
is  brought  about  by  a  physical  process.  New  cellular 
activities  must  be  created  and  developed  to  take  the 
place  of  those  which  have  been  instigating  objectionable 
thoughts  and  deeds. 

When  invoking  mental  strength  for  right  doing  avoid 
meaningless,  profuse  and  unnecessary  language.  Pray 
for  life,  mental  strength  and  good  health  through  the 
creation  and  development  of  cellular  energy.  Use  mental 
force  to  make  the  prayers  efficacious.  Pray  earnestly 
and  sincerely,  but  not  loudly.  The  words  may  be  whis- 
pered in  order  not  to  attract  attention.  Pray  for  yourself 
and  not  for  the  benefit  of  others.    Many  people  pray 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  31 

to  hear  themselves  talk.  The  use  of  eloquent  language 
in  a  prayer  may  be  pleasant  to  listen  to,  but  it  is  not 
in  keeping  with  the  object  of  the  invocation.  Praying 
for  other  things  than  self-upbuilding  is  also  a  waste  of 
words.  Pray  in  simple  language  to  be  worthy,  to  do 
right,  to  be  guided  and  to  know  and  see  the  right.  Pray 
for  strength  to  be  honest  and  truthful,  and  your  prayers 
will  be  answered  by  a  mental  uplift  that  will  lead  you 
into  paths  of  good  will  and  right  doing. 

There  is  a  difference  between  individual  brain  cellular 
regeneration  and  religious  reformation,  although  the 
latter  method  is  commendable  and  has  caused  mankind 
to  rise  above  the  thralls  of  a  semi-animal  existence. 
Brain  cellular  regeneration  upbuilds  a  permanent  mental 
control  that  prevents  wrong  doing.  As  long  as  the  con- 
trol is  maintained  by  prayerful  supplications,  there  will 
be  no  relapse  from  the  intent  to  do  right,  and  no  mental 
conflicts  with  temptation.  Religious  reformation  by 
church  worship  simply  holds  the  desire  to  do  wrong  in 
restraint.  The  reformation  is  accomplished  by  emo- 
tional methods.  There  is  no  fixed  and  effective  process 
of  creating  and  developing  new  cellular  influences.  Many 
of  the  converts  fall  from  grace  as  soon  as  they  cease 
attending  church  service  and  no  longer  fraternize  with 
religious  associates.  Such  a  conversion  from  tendencies 
for  wrong  doing  is  not  lasting  unless  the  convert  is  kept 
under  religious  influences.  Mental  regeneration  by  cellu- 
lar development  overcomes  and  banishes  the  cause  for 
wrong  doing.  Bad  habits  and  sinful  inclinations  cease 
because  there  is  no  mental  control  to  incite  them.  Should 
there  be  a  relapse  it  would  be  caused  by  another  develop- 
ment of  an  objectionable  brain  cellular  control,  which 
would  require  time  and  opportunity  to  create. 

Care  should  be  taken  not  to  refer  to  acts  of  wrong 
doing  when  beseeching  strength  for  self-betterment.  The 
mind  should  be  free  from  such  thoughts  to  avoid  the 


82       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

possibility  of  keeping  them  from  becoming  influential 
in  controlling  the  mental  activities.  All  mental  cellular 
developments  become  fixtures  in  the  mind  as  long  as 
the  brain  organ  is  capable  of  being  energized.  This  ability 
to  retain  thought  is  known  as  memory,  and  by  means 
of  its  activities  we  acquire  and  retain  information 
and  knowledge,  and  create  a  record  of  our  individual 
observation  and  experiences.  The  mind,  or  mentality,  is 
the  storehouse  in  which  are  registered  the  events,  inci- 
dents and  experiences  of  our  mortal  existence.  These 
events  and  incidents,  together  with  our  educational 
acquirements,  may  be  recalled  at  any  time  by  mental 
effort  as  long  as  our  mentalities  are  active  and  control- 
lable. Mental  health  is  absolutely  essential  to  cellular 
activity.  Mental  perturbances  of  every  form  and  nature 
result  from  brain  cellular  disease  and  decadence.  The 
only  remedy  for  this  mental  failing  is  to  adopt  a  regen- 
erative method  of  enlivening  the  brain  cellular  activities. 
It  cannot  be  done  by  medical,  psychological  or  other 
extraneous  treatment.  To  tamper  with  the  brain  organ- 
ism by  physical  means  would  be  destructive  to  life, 
because  that  organism  is  the  seat  of  our  individual  ac- 
tivity. To  dose  it  with  drugs  and  nostrums  is  a  milder 
form  of  cellular  destruction.  To  treat  a  brain  affliction 
by  extraneous  mental  science  is  an  utter  impossibility. 
It  would  be  as  easy  to  change  the  language  of  a  book 
by  thinking  about  it  as  it  would  be  to  actuate  the  brain 
cells  of  another  person  by  other  than  his  own  mental 
effort.  The  only  way  to  heal  mental  ills  and  to  enliven 
and  strengthen  brain  cellular  activities  is  to  upbuild 
personal  mental  energy  for  right  doing.  That  must  be 
done  by  individual  endeavor.  The  mind  should  be 
energized  by  a  strong  mental  effort  to  overcome  thoughts 
and  influences  that  are  both  distracting  and  destructive. 
The  mental  trend  of  thought  and  deed  should  be  changed. 
Thoughts    for    self-upbuilding,    self-restraint    and    self- 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  38 

respect  must  be  substituted  for  thoughts  that  cause 
mental  and  physical  distress.  There  is  no  better  way 
to  effect  this  change  and  to  upbuild  mental  and  physical 
health  than  to  exercise  and  energize  the  mind  by  sincere, 
earnest,  heartfelt  prayer.  Life  inspires,  energizes,  invig- 
orates and  strengthens  our  physical  and  mental  activities. 
The  germ  of  mortal  life  that  created  and  caused  our 
existence  as  units  of  humanity  is  still  embodied  in  our 
beings.  It  is  the  power  that  affords  us  ability  to  pro- 
create, exist,  remain  active,  and  to  protect  ourselves 
from  impending  perils.  That  germ  was  a  gift  of  the 
Creator  to  humanity  to  be  used  for  our  safety  and  salva- 
tion. To  what  better  purpose  could  it  be  employed  than 
to  arouse  its  activities  for  self-preservation  by  the  use 
of  sincere  prayer? 

The  germ  of  mortal  life  is  the  endowment  that  sep- 
arates and  divides  into  species  the  various  forms  and 
types  of  creative  existence.  It  also  enlivens  and  causes 
these  different  species  to  become  distinct  and  never 
changing  units  in  their  varied  reproductions  and  pro- 
creations. One  distinct  form  of  unit  creation  will  not 
reproduce  or  procreate  with  another  form.  Each  type 
or  species  of  family  unit  life  must  necessarily  remain  in- 
dependent of  other  types,  so  far  as  change  of  individuality 
is  concerned.  In  this  way  the  varied  forms  of  creative 
existence  are  divided  into  unchangeable,  unalterable 
types  of  family  units.  There  can  be  no  mixing  or  inter- 
mingling of  their  reproductive  or  procreative  relations. 
The  germ  of  mortal  life  bestowed  on  the  human  family 
causes  us  to  be  supreme  in  worldly  affairs.  We  dominate 
all  other  creative  existence  and  consider  ourselves  as 
especially  privileged  and  protected.  That  feeling  of  exal- 
tation is  warranted  and  proper.  We  possess  mentalities 
of  a  nature  not  to  be  found  in  other  animal  creations, 
and  it  clearly  indicates  that  the  germ  of  mortal  life  with 
which  we  were  endowed  was  bestowed  for  the  purpose  of 


34       FOR    THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

fitting  ourselves  for  a  still  higher  transcendency.  Should 
that  be  true  this  immortal  benefaction  would  be  the  re- 
sult of  the  good  influences  created  by  the  mentality, 
which  the  germ  of  mortal  life  had  invigorated.  We  are 
therefore  justified  in  imploring  life  to  give  us  strength 
and  ability  to  do  right,  to  know  the  right  and  to  live 
right  that  we  may  prepare  ourselves  for  future  salvation. 

The  thought  may  suggest  itself  that  brain  cellular 
regeneration  might  not  prove  to  be  as  beneficial  to  hu- 
manity as  religious  conversion,  through  church  worship 
and  ceremonials,  should  it  ever  become  popular.  There  is 
a  diflference  in  these  two  methods  of  mental  reformation. 
Brain  cellular  regeneration  prepares  its  adherents  for 
immortality  by  freeing  the  mind  from  the  control  of  evil 
influences.  Emotional  reformation  causes  its  advocates 
to  restrain  harmful  tendencies  by  attending  religious 
meetings  and  similar  devotional  exercises,  at  which  doc- 
trinal teachers  advocate  their  particular  form  of  religion. 
There  are  a  number  of  different  forms  and  doctrines  of 
religious  belief.  But  should  the  adoption  of  individual 
brain  cellular  regeneration  become  universal,  the  great- 
est and  most  important  benefit  to  be  derived  would  be 
the  general  use  of  practical  thought,  and  the  absolute 
banishment  from  the  public  mind  of  all  false  religious 
theories  and  doctrines.  There  would  then  be  a  wonderful 
uplift  in  worldly  affairs.  Practical  thought  is  the  creator 
of  right  doing  and  all  else  that  is  beneficial  and  worthy, 
and  practical  thought  is  the  product  of  brain  cellular 
regeneration.  It  is  the  emanation  of  a  mental  control 
free  from  influences  that  distract  and  destroy  the  good 
results  of  human  endeavor.  Brain  cellular  regeneration 
upbuilds  practical  thought,  right  doing  and  all  else  that 
gives  us  comfort,  conveniences  and  sane  enjoyment.  That 
is  more  than  our  present  diverse  methods  of  religious 
worship  accomplish. 

An  objection  to  the  methods  of  mental  regeneration 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  35 

advocated  in  this  volume  may  be  urged  by  followers  of 
the  christian  and  other  religious  organizations  by  state- 
ments that  it  would  obviate  the  necessity  of  organized 
religion,  and  render  its  good  work  valueless  as  a  public 
reformer.  That  could  not  be  possible.  Organized  religion 
is  the  fundament  of  our  social  and  political  structure, 
and  for  that  reason  is  indispensable  to  public  welfare. 
The  real  good  to  be  accomplished  by  cellular  regener- 
ation by  individual  endeavor  is  to  banish  from  the  mind 
thoughts  of  superstition,  reliance  on  divine  guidance, 
religious  shams  and  other  delusions  that  impair  our 
ability  to  upbuild  the  mentality  and  develop  mental 
strength  to  overcome  all  forms  of  wrong  doing.  No  con- 
scientious person  could  object  to  such  a  manner  of  serv- 
ing humanity. 

The  method  of  mental  regeneration,  and  the  causes 
that  render  it  necessary,  are  explained  in  several  of  the 
propositions  published  in  this  volume.  These  repetitions 
are  deemed  essential  to  impress  readers  with  their  im- 
portance. A  careful  and  thorough  investigation  of  brain 
and  nerve  cell  control,  and  its  varied  effects  and  influences 
on  human  activities,  is  earnestly  requested.  The  sooner 
intelligent  people  convince  themselves  that  there  is  no 
supernatural  influence,  and  that  man  is  a  super-animal 
subject  only  to  natural  laws,  the  better  it  will  be  for 
human  welfare. 

Charles  Gerard  Conn. 
Los  Angeles,  California, 

January  3,  1919. 


36  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER   ONE 

THAT    MAN    HAS    EXISTED    FOR    MORE    THAN    FIVE    HUNDRED 
THOUSAND   YEARS,   AND  THAT   THE  SKELETAL  RELICS  OF 
PREHISTORIC    MAN,    TOGETHER    WITH    FULL    INFOR- 
MATION   CONCERNING    THEIR   DISCOVERIES,    MAY 
BE   FOUND   IN    SEVERAL   EUROPEAN    MUSEUMS 

IN  an  article  as  brief  and  limited  in  detailed  descrip- 
tion as  this  one  must  be,  it  would  be  impossible  to 
give  readers  an  intelligent  understanding  of  the 
origin  and  development  of  prehistoric  man.  Records  to  be 
found  in  the  physical  anthropological  departments  of 
every  museum,  university  and  college  in  all  of  the  prin- 
cipal countries  show  conclusively  that  historic  man  has 
lived  only  a  day,  when  his  existence  is  compared  with  that 
of  his  prehistoric  ancestors.  The  history  of  man  for  which 
we  have  authenticated  records  dates  back  less  than  seven 
thousand  years.  Research,  paleontological  and  geological 
investigations  have  demonstrated  that  prehistoric  man,  or 
the  stock  from  which  he  sprang,  existed  over  five  hundred 
thousand  years  ago.  The  ape-man  of  Java,  also  designated 
as  the  Trinil  man,  a  pre-human  creature,  is  known  to  have 
existed  during  the  Pliocene  age,  or  what  is  better  known 
as  the  tertiary  period.  This  brute  man  probably  possessed 
little  or  no  mental  development,  and  doubtless  clubbed  his 
way  through  life,  when  in  search  of  food,  or  in  self-defense. 
The  next  man  of  whom  skeletal  relics  have  been  found 
existed  about  250,000  years  later  and  is  described  as  the 
Heidelberg  man.  This  nearer  relative  to  modern  man  came 
from  the  first  human  race  known  to  have  inhabited  Western 
Europe,  about  the  time  of  the  second  interglacial,  or  warm 
period.  Then,  after  another  one  hundred  thousand  or  more 
years,  the  race  to  which  the  Piltdown  man  belonged  existed 
in  what  is  now  known  as  England,  and  the  skeletal  remains 
of  one  of  these  still  nearer  human  beings  was  discovered 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  87 

at  Sussex.  The  Piltdown  man  must  have  existed  during 
the  early  Pliocene  age,  according  to  the  fauna  found  with 
the  skeletal  relics.  After  another  jump  of  fifty  thousand 
years,  more  or  less,  the  cave-dwelling  tribe  of  hunters  known 
as  the  Neanderthal  race  lived  in  that  part  of  Europe  now 
known  as  France.  It  is  said  that  this  race  existed  more 
than  one  hundred  thousand  years  ago,  and  that  certain 
caves  in  France  were  occupied  continuously  by  them  for 
over  fifty  thousand  years.  The  next  race  of  prehistoric  man 
to  become  known  to  anthropological  discovery  was  the  Cro- 
Magnon  type.  This  race  of  men  probably  existed  twenty- 
five  or  thirty  thousand  years  ago,  and  it  is  said  to  have  been 
the  best  developed  and  most  intellectual  of  the  prehistoric 
races.  The  Cro-Magnon  people  were  famous  hunters,  and 
also  possessed  noteworthy  artistic  ability,  as  their  carvings, 
drawings  and  paintings  of  animal  life,  on  the  walls  of  caves 
inhabited  by  them,  plainly  indicate.  After  the  Cro-Magnon 
race  disappeared,  as  did  all  previous  prehistoric  races,  there 
came  into  Western  Europe  large  numbers  or  migrations  of 
human  beings  from  Asia,  Eastern  Europe,  and  possibly 
Africa.  It  is  not  known  from  what  races  the  white  man 
sprung.  Later  on  scientific  research  will  probably  make  that 
discovery. 

That  prehistoric  man  existed  during  the  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  years  beginning  with  the  later  tertiary  period 
of  earthly  development,  there  can  be  no  doubt.  At  the  time 
of  that  period,  which  followed  the  Reptile  age,  also  known 
as  the  Mammal  age,  there  was  great  forest  growth,  and  the 
warm  climate  gave  impetus  to  the  creation  of  animal  life. 
Then  came  tremendous  physical  earthly  changes.  Convul- 
sions of  the  earth*s  surface  created  new  continents  and 
submerged  others.  Oceans  covered  new  parts  of  land  and 
gave  up  others  to  alter  old  landmarks.  The  ice  caps  of  the 
north  pole  sent  glacial  slides  over  certain  regions,  and 
changed  temperate  to  frigid  zones.  There  were  at  least 
three  and  probably  four  glacial  periods,  known  as  the  ice 


38       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

age.  Thousands  of  years  intervened  between  these  periods, 
when  there  would  be  warm  or  temperate  climates  in  West- 
ern Europe.  It  was  during  these  warm  periods  that  pre- 
historic man  existed  and  thrived,  and  the  earth  and  rock 
strata  formed  during  these  warm  intervals  have  enabled 
geologists  and  paleontologists  to  fix  the  age  of  the  skeletal 
relics  of  the  different  types  of  prehistoric  man  that  have 
been  discovered. 

Nothing  is  known  about  the  languages  used,  or  the  re- 
ligious customs  of  prehistoric  man.  It  may  be  presumed 
that  language  among  the  Trinil  and  Heidelberg  races  must 
have  been  very  primitive  and  probably  was  confined  to  hm- 
ited  and  necessary  uses.  The  vocabulary  was  doubtless  in- 
creased as  the  mentality  became  developed  and  cellular  activ- 
ities were  made  possible.  Ability  to  think  also  was  very  lim- 
ited, as  it  is  now  found  among  present  ignorant,  uncultured 
people.  Mental  development  and  culture  are  a  question  of 
long  training.  See  the  thousands  upon  thousands  of  years 
required  by  mankind  to  reach  its  present  intellectual  status. 
What  then  must  have  been  the  mental  condition  of  pre- 
historic man  ?  There  was  undoubtedly  a  suggestion,  or  pos- 
sibly a  mental  religious  impression,  of  a  divine  influence. 
The  worship  of  God  could  not  in  those  prehistoric  ages 
have  been  established.  Primitive  forms  of  worship  might 
later  have  been  developed  in  the  Cro-Magnon  and  other 
races  that  followed  in  the  last  stages  of  prehistory.  But 
religious  worship  and  thought  are  a  result  of  mental  train- 
ing, and  prehistoric  man  lacked  both  brain  development  and 
opportunity  to  become  religious.  Warlike,  savage  people, 
who  subsist  on  animal  food,  could  not  be  expected  to  be 
influenced  by  thoughts  of  God,  or  of  a  future  existence, 
unless  in  a  primitive,  rudimentary  manner.  That  may 
have  been  the  reason  why  prehistoric  man  remained  in  a 
savage  state  for  so  long  a  period.  Religious  worship, 
thoughts  of  a  divine  influence,  and  an  effort  to  become 
worthy  of  immortality  are  the  cause  of  such  wonderful 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  39 

strides  in  modern  mental  development.  It  was  not  until 
after  the  beginning  of  the  christian  era,  that  human  ability 
began  to  upbuild  by  leaps  and  bounds.  Since  that  time,  al- 
most everything  that  is  good  and  beneficial  to  mankind  has 
been  given  to  the  world,  except  the  benefactions  of  the 
Creator. 

In  the  gradual  mental  development  of  prehistoric  man 
may  be  found  the  cause  of  brain  cellular  activity.  The 
process  of  development  must  have  been  slow,  and  the  cells 
created  were  transmitted  by  means  of  the  brain  organ  to 
the  posterity  of  each  successive  generation  in  the  same 
manner  that  mental  activities  are  inherited  in  this  age. 
Mental  force  was  gradually  generated  and  developed  as 
cellular  activities,  each  successive  generation  inheriting  brain 
organs  with  a  greater  number  of  undeveloped  cells,  ready 
to  be  called  into  activity  by  the  mental  efforts  of  the  possess- 
ors. In  this  way  modern  humanity  has  inherited  and  grown 
into  the  possession  of  superior  brain  cellular  activities. 
There  has  been  no  supernatural  development,  or  influence. 
Our  present  intellectual  vigor  and  enlightenment  are  the  re- 
sult of  countless  ages  and  successive  generations  of  gradual 
mental  development.  They  are  the  creation  of  mental  exer- 
cise and  studious  efforts.  They  have  resulted  from  a  con- 
stantly increased  ability  to  control  and  make  good  use  of 
practical  thought.  That  method  of  upbuilding  mankind's 
mentality  will  continue  its  work  of  wonders,  until  our 
posterity  has  reached  the  zenith  of  mental  vigor  and  power. 


40 


FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


RECORD  OF  PREHISTORIC  MAN  DISCOVERIES. 


SERIES 


AUTHENTICATED 


DOUBTFUIv 


EARLIEST   SERIES 

(Early  Pleistocene 
or  perhaps  later 
Pliocene) 


Lower     Paleolithic 
Series.     Chellean 


Middle    Paleolithic 
Series.    Acheulian 
to  Mousterian 


Upper  Paleolithic 
Series.  Aurigna- 
cian 


Magdalenian 


PLACE 
Trinil 

(Java) 
Mauer 

(Germany) 


NAME 

Pitheoanthropus 

erectus* 
Homo  heidel- 

bergensis* 


No  authenticated  skeletal 
remains 

La  Quina  (France)* 
Le  Moustier  (France)  t 
La  Chapelle-aux-Saintst 
Neanderthal  (Germany) 
Forbes  Quarry  (Gibraltar) 
Spy  (Belgium) t 
Krapina  (Croatia) 
La  Naulette  (Belgium)  t 
Malarnaud  (France)  t 
St,  Brelade  (Jersey)  t 
La  Ferrassie  (France) t 
Pech  de  I'Aze  (France)  t 
Taubach  (Germany) 

Grotte  des  Enfants  (Mentone)t 
Cavillon  (Mentone)t 
Barma  Grande  (Mentone)t 
Cro-Magnon  (Greece)  t 
Paviland  (England,  So.  Wales) t 

Combe  Capelle  ( France)  t 
Chancelade  (  France)  t 


SKELETONS  OR  BONES  FROM 

Piltdown* 

Galley  Hill* 

Ipswich* 

Olmo* 

Castenedolo* 

Foxhall* 

Savona* 

Krapinat  (Obermaier) 
(but     see     the     Middle 
Paleolithic    Series) 

Sipka  (Moravia)  t 
Ochos  (Moravia)  t 
Moulin  (Ouignon,  France) 
Dartford  (England)* 
Bury  (England)* 


*  From  an  alluvial  deposit, 
t  Cave  deposit. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  41 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER  TWO 

THAT  A  CAREFUL  INVESTIGATION  OF  THE  MENTAL  AND  PHYS- 
ICAL DEVELOPMENT  OF  MAN,  ITS  CAUSE,  INCEPTION  AND 
GROWTH     WILL     CONVINCE     INTELLIGENT     PERSONS 
THAT  WE  ARE  NOT  CONTROLLED  BY  A  SUPERNAT- 
URAL INFLUENCE,  AND  THAT  OUR  MENTAL- 
ITIES ARE  PHYSICAL  FUNCTIONS 

IT  IS  a  mistake  to  believe  that  man  was  first  endowed 
with  a  fully  developed  mentality,  capable  of  acquiring 
information  and  knowledge,  and  of  causing  him  to 
be  an  intellectual  being.  That  could  not  have  been  possible, 
or  prehistoric  man  would  not  have  been  practically  a  brute 
animal  for  so  long  a  period.  The  development  of  man's 
mentality  has  resulted  from  hundreds  of  thousands  of  years 
of  mental  training,  and  had  man's  mentality  been  restricted 
to  the  use  of  the  five  senses,  he  would  now  be  in  the  monkey- 
baboon  stage.  Man  was  created  as  a  super-animal,  and  was 
provided  with  a  mentality,  which  has  been  guided  and  con- 
trolled by  a  super-sense  that  has  enabled  him  to  grow  in 
both  mental  and  physical  stature.  The  man  of  today  differs 
in  every  possible  particular  from  the  man  of  prehistory, 
or  the  man  of  seven  thousand  years  ago,  who  then  inhabited 
Egypt  and  Mesopotamia,  and  from  whom  we  have  received 
our  first  historical  records.  That  fact  alone  indicates  that 
modern  man  is  the  upgrowth  of  mental  development,  or 
there  would  have  been  a  previous  record  of  his  life  history, 
dated  in  what  is  now  the  prehistory  period. 

It  is  not  a  stretch  of  the  imagination  to  fancy  the  mental 
condition  of  the  Trinil-prehistoric  man,  which  caused  him 
to  wander  about  the  primeval  forests  with  a  club  in  hand  in 
search  of  food ;  or  to  follow  the  efforts  of  the  Piltdown  man, 
who  had  discovered  that  a  bow  with  a  flint-headed  arrow 
was  a  better  weapon  than  a  club ;  or  to  imagine  the  bettered 
condition  of  the  Neanderthal  cave  man,  surrounded  in  his 


42       FOR   THE   GOOD    OF   THE    WORLD 

rock  den  by  his  half  human  family;  or  to  see  the  Cro- 
Magnon  man  painting  pictures  of  animals  on  the  walls  of  a 
cavern;  or  to  witness  the  efforts  of  other  prehistoric  men, 
who  discovered  the  use  of  bronze  and  iron  for  the  manu- 
facture of  weapons  and  utensils.  Should  the  reader  still 
be  skeptical  as  to  the  growth  of  man  in  intellectual  powers, 
let  him  examine  records  of  the  ancient  Egyptians,  or  the 
shelves  of  an  antiquarian  shop.  Modern  man  is  the  mental 
and  physical  upgrowth  of  prehistoric  man.  He  possesses 
the  same  physical  organs  of  his  brutish  ancestor,  but  he 
has  become  refined  and  educated  through  the  long  process 
of  mental  training,  and  is  no  longer  a  brutish  human 
animal. 

After  the  real  change  had  been  effected  in  modern  man's 
mentality,  the  refinements  of  body  and  physical  appearance 
naturally  followed.  The  upgrowth  has  been  simple  and 
was  made  effective  through  the  physical  law  of  inheritance. 
The  process  of  procreation  caused  the  parents  to  pass  to 
their  progeny  the  benefits,  mental  and  physical,  derived  from 
their  mortal  existence.  The  results  of  their  sins,  also,  were 
transmitted;  but  the  balance,  fortunately,  was  in  favor  of 
well  doing;  hence  the  constant  but  gradual  better  develop- 
ment. The  great  uplift  was  caused  by  the  increase  in  the 
size  and  capabilities  of  the  brain  cellular  organism.  That 
growth  caused  essential  changes  in  the  nervous  system  and 
the  varied  physical  functions.  Each  successive  generation, 
as  a  rule,  was  better  developed  mentally  and  physically  than 
the  preceding  one.  In  this  way  the  upgrowth  and  intellectual 
attainments  of  modern  man  have  been  accomplished. 

Readers  not  familiar  with  the  mental  processes  of  nerve 
and  brain  cellular  development,  should  inform  themselves 
on  that  subject.  It  would  have  much  to  do  with  banishing 
from  their  minds  the  absurdity  of  attributing  mental  and 
physical  activities  to  supernatural  and  other  influences,  such 
as  the  divine  mind,  spiritual  control,  and  similar  imagina- 
tive causes.   Our  mentalities  prompt  every  thought,  act  and 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  48 

deed,  right  or  wrong,  and  these  promptings  result  from 
either  our  own  mental  training  or  the  cellular  activities  in- 
herited from  ancestors  and  developed  by  ourselves.  There 
is  no  other  mental  control  than  the  one  we  exert  over  our 
own  mentalities. 

When  the  wonderful  creation  and  distribution  of  the 
intricate  mass  of  nerve  and  brain  cellular  matter,  that  con- 
stitutes and  incites  our  mental  and  physical  activities,  are 
taken  into  consideration,  it  will  be  seen  that  it  would  be 
impossible  for  any  outside  influence  to  control  or  guide  us 
in  any  manner  except  as  hereinafter  explained. 

Mental  training  means  the  development  of  cellular  in- 
fluences to  do  things,  right  or  wrong.  It  is  the  acquisition 
of  an  ability  to  perform  mental  and  physical  acts.  These 
acts  may  be  for  right  or  wrong  doing.  Whatever  they  are, 
they  constitute  our  mental  training.  Our  life  history  is  a 
constant  record  of  mental  training  to  be  handed  down  to  our 
posterity,  through  their  inherited  brain  and  nerve  cell  or- 
ganism. The  mental  record  thus  transmitted  will  not  be  of 
service  to  posterity  unless  it  is  developed.  And  that  develop- 
ment should  be  a  matter  of  great  moment  to  us,  unless  we 
desire  to  introduce  the  result  of  ancestral  evil  training  into 
our  mental  activities,  along  with  that  which  is  desirable. 

In  all  vertebrate  animals,  including  man,  the  nervous 
system,  or  the  system  that  controls  our  physical  and  mental 
movements,  is  divided  into  two  separate  and  distinct  sys- 
tems, the  cerebro-spinal,  and  the  sympathetic,  or  the  gangli- 
onic, system.  The  cerebro-spinal  division  includes  the  brain 
and  spinal  cord,  and  the  cranial  and  spinal  nerves.  This 
system  presides  over  such  functions  as  sensation,  motion 
and  intellect,  and  all  the  nervous  organs  concerned  in  sensa- 
tion, volition  and  mental  action.  The  other,  or  sympathetic, 
division  consists  of  ganglia  connected  by  nervous  cords 
which  extend  from  the  cranium  to  the  pelvis,  along  each 
side  of  the  vertebral  column,  and  from  which  nerves  with 
large  ganglionic  masses  proceed  to  the  viscera  and  blood 


44       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

vessels  in  the  cavities  of  the  chest,  abdomen  and  pelvis. 
This  is  designated  as  the  system  of  organic  life,  since  it 
seems  to  regulate,  almost  independently  of  mental  activity, 
the  performance  of  the  functions  of  the  organs  of  respira- 
tion, circulation  and  digestion.  In  addition  to  the  nerve 
systems,  there  are  nerve  fibers  that  penetrate  and  ramify 
through  every  part  of  the  body,  controlling  muscular  action, 
and  constituting  what  might  be  known  as  our  sensory  sys- 
tem, since  it  excites  emotions  and  controls  the  sense  of 
touch,  or  feeling.  The  entire  nervous  system  is  a  part  of 
our  mental  activities,  and  as  such  should  be  considered 
when  contemplating  the  theory  of  mental  healing. 

The  organism  or  mental  machine  that  actuates  and  keeps 
the  human  system  alive  and  in  working  order  is  the  men- 
tality, the  brain  cellular  organism  with  its  wonderful  mental 
force.  This  mental  machine  has  been  in  the  process  of 
development  since  man  was  created  as  a  rudimentary  crea- 
ture. It  has  been  gradually,  but  constantly,  improved  by 
successive  numberless  generations,  until  it  has  become  the 
controlling  influence  of  earthly  activities.  And  it  is  destined 
to  be  still  further  greatly  developed.  The  only  query  now  in 
the  minds  of  readers  is  doubtless  as  to  the  nature  of  the  influ- 
ence that  keeps  the  mentality,  the  mental  machine,  in  oper- 
ation. There  must  be  a  force,  mental  or  otherwise,  that 
causes  man  to  think,  and  to  become  active,  progressive  and 
proficient.  Let  us  consider  for  a  moment  the  cause  of  the 
warble  of  the  songbird.  When  the  sun  shines  and  nature 
puts  on  a  look  of  gladness,  the  little  bird  will  trill  its  song, 
and  seem  happy  because  of  the  inspiration.  What  force 
causes  the  bird  to  sing,  the  lion  to  roar,  the  dog  to  howl,  or 
the  man  to  think  and  talk.  There  must  be  some  extraneous 
power  to  cause  these  apparent  phenomena.  The  bird  could 
not  sing,  or  the  man  talk,  unless  inspired  by  some  influence, 
nor  could  we  conjecture  what  causes  many  unexplained 
occurrences,  incident  to  what  seems  supernatural  power. 
The  answer  is  to  be  found,  when  we  know  what  magic  causes 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  45 

a  seed  to  sprout,  grow  and  blossom  into  a  beautiful  flower. 
There  is  only  one  answer,  Life. 

Life  is  the  cause  of  creation,  the  influence  that  preserves 
earthly  activities,  the  inspiration  of  animate  existence,  the 
-•^orce  that  impels  development,  and  the  power  that  moves 
the  wheels  of  universal  progress.  There  is  nothing  super- 
natural in  mortal  affairs  but  life,  and  that  mystery  may 
never  be  revealed  to  us.  It  is  a  mystery  that  is  wonderful, 
indescribable  and  unaccountable.  The  intellectual  develop- 
ment and  workings  of  our  mentalities  are  marvelous,  but 
they  are  no  more  remarkable  than  the  growth  of  a  tree,  or 
flower,  or  the  reproduction  of  all  forms  of  animal  and 
vegetable  life,  each  unit  always  separate  and  distinct,  with 
no  mixing  of  various  species  or  families.  We  can  account 
for  mental,  physical  and  vegetable  development,  because  of 
training  and  culture,  but  we  cannot  explain  or  understand 
how  the  various  units  of  the  two  earthly  kingdoms  of  life 
are  invariably  separate  and  distinct  in  their  processes  of 
procreation.  We  know  that  the  bird  sings,  and  the  dogs 
howl  or  bark,  and  man  thinks  and  talks,  because  of  the 
inherited  cells  that  cause  them  to  do  so  instinctively  under 
certain  conditions.  We  also  know  that  cultivation,  culture 
and  careful  breeding  will  improve  everything  in  nature,  but 
we  do  not  understand  why  each  race,  species,  variety  or 
kind  of  the  different  units  of  the  animal  and  vegetable  king- 
doms has  its  own  particular  markings,  characteristics  and 
distinctions  from  the  other  units  of  life. 

Life  creates  and  causes  vegetable  growth,  and  creates 
and  inspires  animate  existence.  Also  the  process  of  pro- 
creation and  development  is  incited  and  controlled  by  life. 
Every  mental  and  physical  movement  is  the  result  of  life's 
activities,  and  that  is  why  we  have  growth  and  development. 
Mental  force  is  a  form  of  animate  life.  It  is  not  a  result  of 
supernatural  power.  Were  that  not  so,  how  could  the  birds 
sing  their  various  songs,  or  all  forms  of  animal  life  give 
voice  to  their  various  calls  and  utterances.   Our  method  of 


46       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

giving  voice  to  our  thoughts  is  no  different.  It  all  results 
from  mental  training,  and  inherited  ability,  when  developed. 
Our  thoughts  come  from  the  same  source.  Through  a  long 
process  of  development  we  have  acquired  mental  force  and 
mental  control.  These  accomplishments  result  from  the  use 
of  the  six  senses.  The  sixth,  or  super-sense,  enables  us  to 
think,  devise,  invent,  seek  immortality,  and  develop  both 
ourselves  and  the  rest  of  the  world.  The  five  senses,  touch, 
taste,  smell,  sight  and  hearing,  control  the  activities  of  other 
vertebrate  existence.  These  senses  belong  to  the  nervous 
system  and  are  actuated  by  life.  All  information  and  knowl- 
edge acquired  through  the  use  of  the  senses  are  estab- 
lished as  a  mental  fixture  by  means  of  cellular  development 
in  the  brain  organism,  and  are  then  made  useful  through  the 
influence  of  our  mental  control.  Life  inspires  our  activities, 
both  mental  and  physical,  in  accordance  with  their  develop- 
ment. We  may  be  intellectual  or  not,  good  or  wicked,  use- 
ful or  lazy,  diligent  or  slothful.  Our  worth  to  ourselves, 
and  to  the  world,  depends  entirely  on  our  mental  training, 
and  the  training  of  our  ancestors.  Our  brain  cell  organism 
is  inherited,  together  with  physical  form  and  functions. 

The  germ  of  life,  impregnated  during  the  process  of  pro- 
creation, is  the  unit  that  comprises,  when  developed,  every 
characteristic  of  our  Ufe  career.  It  contains  the  influence 
that  will  cause  us  to  be  worthy  or  unworthy,  to  be  intelli- 
gent or  ignorant,  to  be  strong  and  brilliant  or  to  be  weak 
and  helpless,  to  be  handsome  and  attractive  or  to  be  ugly 
and  repulsive ;  and  for  that  reason  we  are  largely  creatures 
of  heritage.  Should  we  possess  mental  vigor  and  health 
we  may  become  useful  and  worthy  citizens  through  the  good 
results  of  mental  training,  but  much  will  depend  on  the 
characteristics  embodied  in  the  germ  of  life.  There  will  be 
no  spiritual  or  supernatural  influence  to  guide  or  control 
our  efforts  for  right  or  wrong  doing.  We  shall  be  precisely 
what  the  characteristics  of  that  germ  of  life  indicate, 
nothing  more,  nothing  less.   We  are  children  of  nature  and 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  47 

are  reproduced  accordingly.  The  tree  bears  its  peculiar 
nut  or  fruit ;  the  dog  has  its  spots,  howl  and  growl ;  the  bird 
has  its  sweet,  pretty  song;  and  man  has  his  own  character- 
istics, which  cannot  be  submerged  or  entirely  eradicated  as 
long  as  he  is  a  human  animal.  Life  has  been  good  to  man. 
Through  the  influence  of  a  superior  mentality,  we  have  taken 
possession  of  the  world,  and  enjoy  its  great  abundance 
and  blessings.  But  we  are  not  satisfied  with  this  happy 
earthly  condition,  and  insist  that  there  is  a  personal  God, 
to  guide,  control  and  shower  still  greater  benefactions  upon 
us.  We  are  not  contented  with  the  knowledge  that  we  are 
our  own  masters,  and  are  lords  of  the  worldly  domain.  We 
want  a  personal  God,  to  do  our  talking,  control  our  thoughts, 
guide  our  conduct,  heal  our  diseases,  hear  our  complaints 
and  prayers,  show  us  the  way  to  heaven,  allow  our  friends 
and  relatives  to  visit  us  in  spirit  form,  teach  us  to  believe 
in  many  kinds  of  religious  faith,  and  to  act  as  our  servant 
every  time  we  send  up  a  hurry  call.  Some  day,  we  will 
realize  that  there  is  no  personal  God  to  overlook  and  up- 
build our  welfare.  On  that  day,  we  will  learn  that  immor- 
tality is  to  be  achieved  by  our  own  personal  endeavors, 
and  that  it  is  not  the  gift  of  a  personal  God. 


48  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER  THREE 

THAT  THE  PRINCIPLES  FOR  MENTAL  REGENERATION,  ADVOCA- 
TED IN  THIS  SERIES  OF  PROPOSITIONS,  MUST  NECESSARILY 
CONFLICT  WITH  RELIGIOUS  AND  OTHER  METHODS  OF 
REFORMATION,     BUT     NO     CRITICISM     OF    THESE 
METHODS  IS  INTENDED.    ALL  MEANS  OF  REF- 
ORMATION THAT  LEAD  TO  RIGHT  DOING 
DESERVE     EARNEST     AND     HEART- 
FELT SUPPORT 

THE  object  in  publishing  this  volume  is  to  convince 
readers  that  there  is  an  easier  way  to  regenerate  the 
mind  and  body,  and  free  both  our  mental  and  physical 
activities  from  harmful  influences,  than  the  means  employed 
by  religious  methods,  teachings,  and  doctrines  advocated 
for  reformation.  When  engaged  in  a  business  under- 
taking, if  we  can  look  forward  to  success,  we  enter  upon 
the  work  with  renewed  zeal  and  greater  effort.  That  is 
precisely  the  method  of  mental  regeneration  advocated  in 
this  series  of  propositions.  We  are  not  required  to  beseech 
an  unknown  influence  or  power  for  favors  that  cannot  be 
granted.  We  do  not  enter  upon  the  work  of  reformation 
with  our  eyes  closed,  and  our  lips  sealed  from  inquiry  as 
to  how  we  are  to  cast  off  our  sinful  burdens.  We  know, 
at  the  beginning  of  the  campaign  for  mental  freedom,  how 
the  work  is  to  be  done,  and  the  result  to  be  accomplished. 
There  is  no  guess-work,  no  chance  of  defeat  to  be  taken 
into  consideration,  and  no  doubt  as  to  the  final  result,  if  we 
are  persistent  in  our  efforts.  Mental  regeneration  is  exclu- 
sively a  one-man  task.  It  must  be  accomplished  by  individ- 
ual endeavor.  Friends  may  advise,  encourage  and  offer  to 
assist,  but  they  cannot  do  more  than  encourage  us.  We  must 
conform  to  natural  conditions,  and  each  of  us  become  his 
own  savior. 

The  assertion  that  we  are  not  in  any  way  influenced  or 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  49 

guided  in  mortal  life  by  supernatural  power,  will  not  at 
first  meet  with  favor.  But  the  statement  is  true,  and  must 
be  accepted  as  fact  by  every  thoughtful,  reasonable  person. 
It  does  not  follow,  because  we  are  not  controlled  and 
influenced  by  supernatural  power,  that  there  is  no  God,  or 
Supreme  Power,  or  Creator,  or  Omnipotent  Influence.  The 
fact  that  we  are  mortals  living  in  one  of  the  worlds  of  this 
vast,  incomprehensible  universe,  is  proof  sufficient  of  the 
existence  of  an  All-Powerful  Creator.  But  there  is  no  evi- 
dence, and  never  has  been  the  slightest  substantial  proof, 
of  the  existence  of  a  personal  God,  who  looks  after  our 
welfare,  or  mankind  would  not  have  been  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  years  emerging:  from  the  depths  of  bestialism. 
There  is  on  record,  in  the  different  anthropological  museums 
of  the  world,  convincing  evidence  that  prehistoric  man  was 
in  existence  during  the  Pliocene  age,  over  five  hundred  thou- 
sand years  ago.  If  biblical  traditions  could  be  substantiated, 
it  would  be  rather  difficult  to  locate  the  Garden  of  Eden 
and  find  physical  evidence  of  the  existence  of  Adam  and 
Eve.  But  the  old  serpent  that  tempted  Eve  still  survives  the 
disasters  and  cataclysms  of  so  many  ages,  according  to 
religious  information. 

Wrong  doing,  which  comprises  every  form  of  sin  and 
wickedness,  as  well  as  bad  habits,  or  any  deed  or  act  that 
is  harmful  to  self  or  to  others,  is  not  a  lapse  of  spiritual 
guidance,  or  a  failure  to  comply  with  a  religious  obligation, 
or  a  neglect  to  belong  to  a  church.  It  is  a  mental  affliction, 
a  lack  of  brain  cellular  control,  a  mental  physical  weakness, 
a  misdirected  mental  energy  that  may  only  be  reformed 
by  a  physical  process,  but  is  not  so  understood.  There  could 
be  no  sin  or  wickedness,  no  good  and  commendable  acts 
and  deeds,  and  in  fact  no  thoughts,  acts  or  deeds  of  any 
kind,  good  or  bad,  were  it  not  for  the  cellular  activities  of 
our  mentalities.  A  mentality  is  the  cellular  organism  of  the 
brain  organ.  To  use  a  scientific  phrase,  it  is  a  "soft  whitish 
convoluted  mass  occupying  the  cranium  of  a  vertebrate 


50       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

animal,  and  constituting  the  center  of  the  nervous  system 
and  the  seat  of  consciousness  and  volition."  The  brain  or 
nerve  cells  of  this  organism  are  connected  with  nerve  fibers 
that  ramify  through  every  part  of  the  body,  and  control  our 
mental  and  physical  movements.  The  area  of  the  cellular 
organism,  that  constitutes  the  mentality,  is  divided  into  brain 
centers,  each  of  which  has  its  distinct  and  separate  functions 
in  controlling  our  activities.  There  are  six  senses  that  actu- 
ate the  cellular  activities,  when  called  upon  to  do  so ;  and  as 
these  senses  energize,  or  furnish  the  mental  force,  to  ac- 
quire information  and  knowledge,  to  prompt  our  physical 
movements,  and  to  cause  us  to  do  everything  within  the 
ability  of  our  activities,  they  may  be  said  to  be  our  pro- 
pelling force.  The  only  object  in  referring  to  the  cause  of 
our  mental  and  physical  activities  in  this  proposition,  was 
to  explain  why  mental  regeneration  is  a  physical,  and  not 
a  spiritual  process. 

The  mental  training  of  mankind  has  never  been  practical 
and  praiseworthy,  or  there  would  not  be  so  much  belief  in 
supernatural  influences,  games  of  chance,  science  healing, 
spiritual  mediums,  clairvoyants  and  other  absolute  incon- 
gruities. It  will  be  shown  conclusively  in  this  series  of  prop- 
ositions, that  there  cannot  be  transmission  of  thought,  mind 
reading,  or  mental  communication  of  any  kind  between  in- 
dividuals, except  in  the  manner  prescribed  by  nature.  Ex- 
planations also  will  be  made  why  prayers  for  others  are 
never  answered,  and  why  our  own  prayers  for  material 
benefits  are  not  effective.  Individual  prayers  for  right  doing, 
right  living  and  right  thinking  are  our  only  means  of  self- 
regeneration.  They  upbuild  desires  to  overcome  wrong  do- 
ing, and  are  the  means  of  creating  brain  cellular  develop- 
ment for  that  purpose.  To  do  right  means  the  development 
of  an  upright  person.  To  live  right  means  a  life  without 
harm  to  self  or  others.  To  think  right  means  the  exclusion 
of  evil  thought  from  the  mind.  To  realize  the  blessings  to 
be  derived  from  these  three  conditions,  the  cellular  control 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  51 

of  a  mentality  that  instigates  wrong  doing  must  be  changed 
to  a  control  that  will  inspire  right  doing. 

It  has  been  proclaimed  by  certain  church  authorities  that 
the  reason  why  God  does  not  interpose  and  protect  man- 
kind from  the  dangers  and  perils  that  beset  them  is  because 
man  was  created  as  a  free  moral  agent,  and  that  in  all  af- 
fairs of  mortal  life  he  is  privileged  to  choose  between  good 
and  evil,  also  that  if  man  decides  to  accept  evil  he  must 
suffer  the  consequences  of  his  wrong  doing.  There  are  two 
reasons  why  that  argument  is  absolutely  indefensible.  Man's 
mentality  is  a  physical  function,  and  its  activity  and  mental 
scope  are  the  result  of  ages  and  ages  of  training,  develop- 
ment and  upbuilding.  It  is  extremely  doubtful  if  prehistoric 
man  knew  right  from  wrong.  His  ability  to  discriminate 
between  these  two  influences  has  since  been  developed  to 
meet  contingencies.  An  innocent  child  with  an  undeveloped 
mind  does  not  know  right  from  wrong,  and  would  always 
remain  ignorant  of  wrong  doing  were  it  possible  to  keep  its 
mental  development  free  from  objectionable  influences.  The 
other  reason  is  within  the  knowledge  of  every  person.  It  is 
not  what  we  want  to  do  that  controls  our  conduct.  It  is 
what  our  mentalities  compel  us  to  do  that  regulates  our 
choice  between  good  and  evil.  Mental  development  and 
mental  activities  prompt  thoughts  and  deeds.  Every  men- 
tality trained  during  ordinary  life  is  controlled  by  two  in- 
fluences, one  for  right,  and  the  other  for  wrong  doing. 
Should  the  influence  for  right  doing  predominate,  the  exist- 
ence of  its  possessor  will  be  commendable  and  worthy,  but 
as  long  as  there  are  mental  activities  for  wrong  doing  the 
person  will  occasionally  give  up  to  their  influence. 


52  FOR   THE  GOOD   OF  THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER   FOUR 

THAT    WE   ARE   DIRECT   DESCENDANTS    OF    PREHISTORIC    MAN, 
AND  AS    SUCH    BELONG   TO  VERTEBRATE   ANIMAL   LIFE.     WE 
ARE    CONTROLLED   BY   ANIMAL    FUNCTIONS,    TENDENCIES 
AND  PROCLIVITIES,  BUT  POSSESS  A  SUPERIOR   MENTAL- 
ITY   BY    MEANS    OF    WHICH    WE    HAVE    GRADUALLY 
UPBUILDED  OURSELVES  FROM  A  BESTIAL  STATE 
TO    OUR    PRESENT    ENLIGHTENED, 
CIVILIZED  CONDITION 

THERE  must  have  been  some  great  uplifting  influence 
to  have  caused  mankind  to  be  developed  from  a  semi- 
savage  being  to  a  super-man.  The  uplift  has  been 
slow,  and  has  extended  over  countless  generations,  but  it 
has  been  sure,  and  has  accomplished  wonders.  To  compare 
our  present  superior  condition  with  that  of  prehistoric  man, 
we  have  only  to  look  backward  into  the  dark  ages  of  the 
world  for  indications  of  prehistoric  existence.  Man  at  that 
time  resembled  an  ape  in  appearance,  and  probably  in 
methods  of  living.  We  are  still  handicapped  with  animal 
proclivities  inherited  from  our  prehistoric  ancestors,  and 
will  never  be  able  to  entirely  free  ourselves  from  their  in- 
fluences. We  are  animals  by  nature,  instinct  and  functions, 
although  we  designate  ourselves  as  human  beings,  or  mor- 
tals endowed  with  a  super-intellect.  Our  upbuilding  has 
been  accomplished  by  mental  development,  caused  by  a 
super-sense  that  has  provided  the  energy  for  that  develop- 
ment. That  super,  or  sixth  sense,  controls  the  activities  of 
the  five  senses,  but  it  in  no  way  conflicts  with  their  func- 
tions. The  super-sense  may  be  strengthened  and  made  more 
active  by  prayer,  and  the  rise  of  man  from  a  bestial  state 
may  be  attributed  to  the  growth  in  strength  and  power  of 
this  sense,  probably  through  the  use  of  prayerful  supplica- 
tions. As  super-beings  we  could  not  exist  were  all  animal 
propensities  abandoned.   We  must  take  food,  preserve  our 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  53 

procreative  abilities,  retain  and  keep  in  order  all  digestive 
and  other  functional  organs,  and  in  fact,  remain  as  we 
were  created.  That  ought  to  be  evidence  that  we  are  ani- 
mals. Some  of  us  are  a  little  better  than  others,  when  it 
comes  to  a  question  of  comparing  habits,  methods  of  living, 
development  of  mentalities  and  moral  attributes. 

We  could  not  be  saints  and  live  in  this  world.  To  reach 
that  state  of  perfection  we  would  be  compelled  to  find  an- 
other abiding  place.  The  best  we  could  do  in  this  life  would 
be  to  curb  our  passions,  put  a  bridle  on  our  lustful  desires, 
stop  giving  in  to  bad  habits,  be  loyal  and  true  to  our  famiUes 
and  friends,  take  better  care  of  our  health,  drop  all  manias 
for  amassing  wealth  and  gaining  power,  cease  trying  to  do 
the  other  fellow,  and  cultivate  an  aspiration  for  right  doing. 

The  trouble  with  many  of  us,  when  starting  on  a  campaign 
of  self -betterment,  is  that  we  want  to  get  ready  for  immor- 
tality in  a  minute.  We  forget  that  the  place  so  much  sought 
in  another  life  is  not  for  people  with  flesh  and  blood,  and  ani- 
mal desires  and  passions.  Then,  when  finding  that  the  old 
procHvities  continue  their  grip,  we  lose  heart  and  give  up  the 
fight  to  subdue  them.  Occasionally  we  go  to  a  religious 
revival  and  are  told  that  heaven  is  in  sight,  and  all  we  have 
to  do  to  make  the  ascension  is  to  go  forward,  kneel  in 
prayer,  sign  a  pledge  in  acceptance  of  the  christian  faith, 
and  begin  stepping  in  the  old  straight  and  narrow  path  to 
salvation.  Again  the  old  animal  tendencies  begin  their  activ- 
ities, and  the  straight  and  narrow  path  seems  long  and 
crooked. 

Man  will  remain  a  man,  as  long  as  he  is  clothed  in  mortal 
habiliments.  All  of  the  churchmen  this  side  of  eternal 
bliss  may  say  differently,  but  that  will  not  alter  the  fact. 
Man  is  necessarily  controlled  by  animal  proclivities  that  can- 
not be  removed  by  baptism,  holy  water,  vows,  pledges,  or 
other  means  of  religious  conversion.  The  only  thing 
to  be  done  with  man,  to  make  him  worthy  of  salvation,  is  to 
put  a  curb  on  his  propensities,  cause  him  to  overcome  bad 


54       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

habits,  and  let  him  act  and  live  like  a  man.  To  accomplish 
that  task  will  require  time,  patience,  application  and  mental 
effort.  It  will  prove  to  be  a  man's  job,  but  is  worth  the 
undertaking.  A  man  shorn  of  bad  habits,  harmful  indul- 
gences, mental  weakness,  gross  desires  and  acts  of  indis- 
cretion, would  indeed  be  a  man. 

There  are  people  who  think  that  giving  up  bad  habits 
means  the  sacrifice  of  many  enjoyments.  That  is  wrong. 
The  use  of  any  detriment  to  health  should  not  be  an  enjoy- 
ment. Twenty  years  of  indulgence  in  the  best  years  of  one's 
life  are  not  worth  the  suffering  and  misery  due  to  poor 
health,  during  the  remainder  of  an  earthly  existence.  The 
worst  feature  of  a  life  of  excesses  and  indulgences  is  the 
harm  done  to  progeny.  Who  among  us  is  desirous  of  being 
responsible  for  the  birth  of  weak  or  crippled  children? 
What  greater  transgression  could  there  be  than  that  of 
placing  the  curse  of  mental  or  physical  weakness  on  our  own 
sons  or  daughters?  This  is  the  worst,  the  most  culpable  of 
sins.  The  saddest  feature  of  the  whole  question  of  moral 
regeneration  is  that  but  few  of  us  feel  that  we  are  in  danger. 
Only  the  broken-down  human  wrecks  of  a  dissolute  life 
will  admit  that  harmful  excesses  and  indulgences  are  very 
expensive  luxuries.  They  not  only  cost  the  best  days  of  an 
earthly  existence,  but  also  in  nine  times  out  of  ten  the  profli- 
gate dies  a  pauper. 

People  who  feel  the  necessity  of  trying  to  evade  the  con- 
sequences of  wrong  doing  may  do  so  without  publicity  or 
self-abasement.  The  method  is  simple  and  effective.  It  is 
the  same  as  the  one  which  has  upbuilded  mankind.  It  will 
require  considerable  mental  endeavor  to  render  it  effective, 
but  that  may  be  done  without  loss  of  time  from  business, 
social,  or  home  duties.  No  one  need  be  taken  into  the  con- 
fidence of  the  person  attempting  to  cast  off  the  shackles  of 
slavery,  brought  on  by  bad  habits  and  other  indulgences,  or 
even  by  criminal  or  sinful  tendencies.  The  process  may  be 
kept  secret.  In  fact,  it  will  prove  more  successful  when  not 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  55 

made  known  to  others.  Secrecy  aids  the  regeneration.  It 
enables  the  person  to  secure  control  of  his  mentality,  and 
to  overcome  the  desire  for  wrong  doing. 

Let  us  analyze  the  process  of  regenerating  a  mentality.- 
There  are  two  elements  of  control  in  every  sane  mentality, 
one  for  right  and  the  other  for  wrong  doing.  When  the 
control  is  for  right  doing,  the  person  will  do  right.  When 
the  control  is  for  wrong  doing,  there  will  be  the  necessity 
of  a  change.  A  mentality  consists  of  myriads  of  brain  and 
nerve  cells  located  in  the  brain  organ.  These  cells  are 
actuated  by  mental  effort,  and  are  the  result  of  mental 
training.  This  training  develops  cells  in  accordance  with 
the  nature  of  the  training.  Sinful  or  objectionable  thoughts, 
acts  and  deeds  develop  cells  that  influence  a  control  for 
wrong  doing.  That  control  must  be  subjugated  and  over- 
come to  eradicate  the  desire  and  power  of  wrong  doing.  To 
overcome  that  objectionable  influence,  a  stronger  and  more 
potent  desire  for  right  doing  must  be  created.  The  only 
successful  way  to  upbuild  that  desire,  and  cause  it  to  sub- 
due the  influence  for  wrong  doing,  is  to  strengthen  it  by 
fervent,  earnest,  honest  prayer,  in  secret. 

Prayer  to  Life  frequently  implored  will  always  prove 
efficacious  and  beneficial.  It  is  the  only  sure  means  for 
regenerating  a  mental  control.  The  change  will  not  be  made 
momentarily,  or  in  a  short  time.  It  is  a  question  of  mental 
training.  The  training  that  resulted  in  the  development  of 
a  mentality  that  caused  wrong  doing  was  probably  the  work 
of  years.  It  may  require  the  same  length  of  time  to  over- 
come the  effects  of  the  misfortune.  But  it  can  be  done. 
The  prayer  method  will  prove  the  benefactor  that  will  over- 
throw the  control  of  wrong  doing,  provided  the  devotee 
does  not  get  discouraged  and  give  up  the  fight. 


66  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER  FIVE 

THAT  EACH   UNIT   OR  LIVING  THING   IN   EARTHLY   CREATION 
IS  ENDOWED  WITH  ABILITY  TO  PROCREATE  ITS  OWN  KIND, 
AND  TO  MAINTAIN  ITS  OWN  EXISTENCE,  WHEN  CON- 
DITIONS ARE  FAVORABLE.    EACH  OF  THESE  UNITS 
OR  LIVING  THINGS  IS  ENTIRELY  INDEPEND- 
ENT   OF    OTHER     FORMS    OF    EARTHLY 
LIFE,    AND    IS    IN     NO    WAY    RE- 
LATED  TO    NOR    HAS   AN    AF- 
FINITY   FOR    THEM 

THAT  man  is  one  of  the  units  or  living  things  of  earthly 
creation  is  beyond  doubt.  He  stands  at  the  head  of 
the  animal  kingdom,  and  in  that  capacity  dominates 
other  forms  of  created  existence,  and  will  maintain  that 
supremacy  for  all  time.  It  has  been  one  of  the  wise  provis- 
ions of  the  Creator,  to  so  bestow  His  benefactions  that 
each  separate  and  independent  unit,  form,  or  family  of  His 
creations  may  always  remain  the  same,  no  matter  what  other 
changes  may  take  place  in  worldly  affairs.  The  procreative 
functions  of  one  particular  form  of  existence  will  not 
supply  the  procreative  demand  of  another  form,  either  in 
the  animal  or  vegetable  kingdom.  That  provision  places 
the  different  forms  and  varieties  of  created  existence  in 
classes  independent  of  each  other,  and  continues  indefinitely 
the  peculiar  characteristics  that  distinguish  them  from 
each  other. 

Life  is  the  cause  of  the  existence  of  all  things  created. 
It  animates  animal  and  vegetable  creations,  and  the  earth 
furnishes  them  with  subsistence.  Therefore,  Life,  the  Crea- 
tor, must  have  first  created  the  earth  before  the  animal  and 
vegetable  kingdoms  could  have  existed.  They  followed  as 
a  natural  consequence.  It  would  be  tiresome  to  readers  to 
describe  the  changes  that  must  have  taken  place  before 
man  and  other  creations  reached  their  present  state  of  devel- 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  57 

opment.  That  information  is  not  essential.  The  object  in 
leading  up  to  that  subject,  by  referring  to  the  creation,  is  to 
show  the  importance  of  life  as  a  mental  agent. 

Life  creates  mental  force,  mental  effort.  Life  not  only 
animates  our  physical  functions,  but  it  also  actuates  the 
brain  cellular  activities  by  means  of  the  six  senses  and 
creates  thought  and  prompts  acts  and  deeds.  We  speak  of 
mental  effort.  There  could  be  no  such  effort  without  life. 
Life,  through  the  senses,  constitutes  mental  effort,  mental 
energy,  mental  vigor  and  everything  else  that  affords  mental 
strength.  We  acquire  physical  strength  by  exercising  and 
developing  our  muscles.  But  there  would  be  no  strength, 
unless  life  was  the  invigorating  agent.  We  acquire  mental 
and  intellectual  strength  by  a  process  of  training  to  develop 
the  brain  and  nerve  cells  in  the  brain  organism.  There  could 
be  no  development  without  life.  The  cells  could  not  be 
actuated  or  enlivened.  Life  provides  both  vigor  and  activ- 
ity, if  the  brain  organ  is  in  a  healthy,  receptive  condition. 

When  we  walk,  wink  an  eye,  breathe,  talk,  make  use  of 
the  six  senses,  or  perform  any  function  of  ordinary  exist- 
ence, there  may  not  seem  to  be  a  prompting  of  the  mentality. 
But  there  is.  There  could  be  no  thought,  act,  or  deed,  even 
very  insignificant,  without  mental  activity.  The  moment 
mental  activity  ceases,  that  moment  life  takes  its  departure 
from  our  mortal  bodies.  Life  is  the  cause  of  our  existence. 
It  maintains  our  mental  and  physical  activities,  through  the 
medium  of  the  mentality.  If  the  mentality  is  not  properly 
developed,  if  only  the  brain  cell  centers,  that  control  our 
physical  functions,  are  developed,  we  will  then  be  useless 
walking  idiots.  Our  worth  to  ourselves  as  individuals,  and 
to  the  world  as  capable  men  and  women,  depends  entirely  on 
the  nature  and  extent  of  our  brain  cellular  development. 
If  that  is  rational,  intellectual,  vigorous  and  active  we  shall 
be  worthy  and  reputable  citizens. 

Our  mental  and  physical  worth  results  from  our  own 
efforts.    There  could  be  no  other  solution  of  the  problem 


58       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

of  mortal  existence.  We  were  created  on  the  same  plan  that 
governs  other  worldly  creations.  All  created  existence  pro- 
creates and  subsists  on  earthly  products.  It  is  subject  to 
progress  or  decadence,  to  dissolution  and  change  to  a  re- 
creating agent.  Man  is  no  exception  to  this  law  of  nature. 
The  only  argument  in  man's  favor  is  that  he,  as  an  animal, 
has  been  endowed  with  a  superior  mentality  that  enables 
him  to  dominate  all  other  earthly  things,  and  derive  great 
benefit  from  that  domination.  There  is  hope  that  through 
the  medium  of  that  stronger  and  more  potent  mentality, 
man  may  render  himself  worthy  of  immortality. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  59 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  SIX 

IT  IS  IMPOSSIBLE  FOR  ONE  PERSON  TO  RECEIVE  INFORMATION 
AND    KNOWLEDGE    OR    TO    COMMUNICATE    WITH    ANOTHER 
PERSON  UNLESS  BY  MEANS  OF  THE  FIVE  SENSES,  TOUCH, 
TASTE,  SIGHT,  SMELL  AND  HEARING.    THAT  IS  AN   IN- 
EXORABLE LAW  OF  NATURE.     AND  WHEN   MECHANI- 
CAL PROCESSES  ARE  EMPLOYED  FOR  AN  EXCHANGE 
OF   COMMUNICATIONS   THE   FIVE   SENSES    MUST 
BE   USED    TO   RENDER    THEM    INTELLIGIBLE 

A  CAREFUL  study  of  the  processes  and  activities  of 
the  mind  will  convince  the  student  that  it  is  impossi- 
ble for  one  person  to  communicate  with  another  per- 
son, unless  the  five  senses  are  employed.  The  mentality  or 
mind  is  composed  of  cellular  matter  that  is  connected  with 
every  part  of  the  body  by  means  of  sensory  nerves  and  nerve 
fibers.  This  intricate  nerve  system  is  controlled  by  the  senses 
and  it  cannot  be  actuated  in  any  other  way  than  through  the 
use  of  the  senses.  The  five  senses,  touch,  taste,  sight,  smell 
and  hearing,  control  every  avenue  of  our  nervous  system 
which  has  communication  with  the  outside  world.  The  sixth 
or  innate  sense  provides  mental  energy  and  actuates  the  men- 
tality whenever  thought  and  intellectuality  are  concerned. 
The  five  senses  are  the  outpost  sentries  through  which  in- 
formation and  knowledge  are  received  and  imparted.  The 
sixth  or  innate  sense  stores  away  information  and  knowl- 
edge in  the  memory  cells  and  gives  us  the  ability  to  devise 
and  invent,  to  think  out  problems,  to  upbuild  the  mind,  to 
prepare  ourselves  for  immortality  and  to  do  everything  we 
do  except  to  touch,  taste,  see,  smell  and  hear.  These  last 
senses  belong  to  our  physical  nature.  The  sixth  or  innate 
sense  controls  our  mental  energy  and  provides  an  ability  to 
develop  and  upbuild  the  intellect. 

The  white  and  grey  cellular  matter  located  in  the  cranium 
and  known  as  the  mentality  cannot  be  actuated  from  an 


60       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

outside  source.  The  individual  effort  of  the  person  possess- 
ing the  mentality  is  the  only  way  to  set  its  activities  in 
motion.  It  would  be  as  easy  to  think  a  brick  wall  into  a 
tremble  as  it  would  be  for  one  person  to  actuate  the  men- 
tality of  another  person  by  the  use  of  either  his  own  or 
the  divine  mind,  or  by  telepathy  or  any  other  mental  pro- 
cess. Unless  the  cellular  functions  of  a  mentaUty  are  actu- 
ated there  can  be  no  thought,  act  or  deed.  Mental  activity 
creates  thought  and  prompts  deeds,  and  there  can  be  no 
mental  activity  except  through  personal,  individual  en- 
deavor. But  there  could  be  thought  suggestion  where  the 
mind  of  the  subject  to  be  influenced  is  dominated  and  put 
to  sleep,  so  to  speak,  by  the  presence  and  awesome  stare  of 
another  person  with  a  stronger  mentality.  In  such  instances 
the  person  hypnotizes  himself.  The  man  with  the  strong 
stare  and  awesome  presence  subjugates  the  mental  activities 
of  the  hypnotized  person  in  the  same  manner  a  coward  is 
impelled  to  cringe  before  the  compelling  influence  of  his 
conqueror. 

When  considering  the  important  question  of  supernatural 
or  divine  guidance,  mind  reading,  christian  science,  tele- 
pathy, spiritualism  and  other  mental  mistakes,  do  not  for- 
get that  we  are  animals  composed  of  flesh,  blood,  bone, 
sinew  and  cellular  tissue,  and  that  every  bit  of  information 
and  knowledge  that  we  acquire  is  the  result  of  mental  train- 
ing. Not  a  word  or  letter  of  the  alphabet  is  thrust  into 
our  minds  unsought.  Shut  yourself  up  in  a  dark  room 
where  there  is  no  noise  or  odor,  and  where  you  will  not  be 
disturbed  for  several  hours.  There  will  then  be  a  distracting 
silence  if  you  expect  extraneous  mental  treatment,  or  the 
visitation  of  spirit  friends.  There  is  nothing  about  the  men- 
tal or  physical  construction  of  our  bodies  that  would  in- 
dicate a  spiritual  presence.  It  would  be  as  possible  to  talk 
to  a  friend  in  a  foreign  country  without  the  use  of  mechani- 
cal assistance  as  it  would  be  to  communicate  with  him  by 
the  thought  transmission  process.   Thought  is  not  a  mental 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD  61 

sign  board  and  cannot  be  read  in  the  mind.  The  mentality 
or  mind  is  a  physical  function  incapable  of  being  actuated 
from  outside  sources,  and  impossible  of  being  reached  and 
made  the  instrument  of  healing  either  by  the  divine  mind 
or  by  any  other  extraneous  influence. 

It  seems  strange  to  a  thinking  person  that  people  sup- 
posed to  be  endowed  with  common  sense  will  patronize 
fakirs  who  hang  out  signs  advertising  their  ability  to  heal 
disease  by  mental  science,  tell  fortunes,  read  minds,  prac- 
tice astrology  and  do  other  things  that  deal  with  the  super- 
natural. But  that  method  of  deception  is  not  much  more 
reprehensible  than  it  is  to  be  told  that  a  personal  God  pro- 
tects and  guides  us  when  epidemics,  plagues,  war  and  num- 
berless other  troubles  are  constantly  afflicting  us.  The  old 
truism  that  "truth  is  stranger  than  fiction"  is  continually 
attracting  attention.  There  is  about  as  much  of  the  super- 
natural in  our  natures  as  will  be  found  in  a  pail  of  water. 
The  only  difference  between  a  human  animal  and  one  that 
roams  the  forest  or  pulls  a  cart  is  a  super-mentality  created 
by  the  endowment  of  a  sixth,  or  innate  sense.  In  other 
particulars  we  belong  to  nature  and  are  subject  lo  tne  mci- 
dents  and  vicissitudes  that  beset  creative  existence. 


62  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   SEVEN 

THAT    LIFE    ANIMATES    ALL    EXISTENCE    AND    CAUSES    IT    TO 
THRIVE   AND   PROCREATE   IN   ACCORDANCE   WITH    NATURAL 
LAWS.    THAT  MANKIND  IS  SUBJECT  TO  THESE  LAWS,  AND 
TO  VARIOUS  CHANGES  THAT  TAKE  PLACE.  THAT  WHILE 
LIFE    PROVIDES    THE     ANIMATION     THAT     SUSTAINS 
MANKIND,  THE  SIX  SENSES  CREATE  AND  CONTROL 
THE  MENTAL  FORCES  THAT  CALL  INTO  USE  THE 
BRAIN      CELLULAR      ACTIVITIES,      AND      THAT 
THESE  CELLULAR  ACTIVITIES  SUPPLY  MEN- 
TAL ABILITY,  AND  CAUSE  OUR  PHYSICAL 
ORGANS    TO    FUNCTION 

IT  MUST  be  well  understood  that  the  five  senses  control 
the  only  means  we  have  of  acquiring  information  and 
knowledge  from  extraneous  sources.  These  senses  are 
the  mental  forces  that  actuate  the  nerve  cells  of  the  brain 
centers,  controlled  by  them.  For  instance,  when  walking  they 
control  our  footsteps,  and  sight  guards  against  a  misstep, 
or  a  stumble.  Hearing  and  sight  are  the  senses  most  com- 
monly employed,  but  each  sense  has  its  particular  duties 
which  are  faithfully  performed,  when  kept  keen  and  active. 
All  vertebrate  animals,  except  man,  exist  through  the  use 
of  the  five  senses.  They  do  not  possess  the  sixth  or  super- 
sense,  which  enables  us  to  combine  the  use  of  the  animal 
and  the  super-sense,  and  by  mental  training  accomplish 
wonderful  mental  and  physical  progress.  There  is  reason 
for  regret  that  the  combined  use  of  the  five  senses,  and 
the  sixth,  or  super-sense,  is  the  direct  cause  of  human  dis- 
tress, as  well  as  of  our  right  doing.  Wickedness  results 
from  the  development  of  animal  proclivities,  and  when  the 
activities  of  these  proclivities  are  incited  and  controlled  by 
the  mental  force  of  the  sixth,  and  stronger  sense,  the 
wickedness  and  distress  must  necessarily  be  more  violent 
and  destructive. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  63 

We  often  wonder  why  vertebrate  animal  life  never  be- 
comes extravagant  in  its  needs  and  uses  of  nature's 
products.  All  that  an  animal  requires,  to  be  contented,  is 
shelter  and  sufficient  food  to  maintain  existence.  Without 
the  super-sense  man  would  be  contented  with  animal  life. 
It  is  the  influence  of  the  sixth,  or  super-sense,  that  causes 
man  to  become  either  a  fiend,  or  a  true  human  being.  If 
we  drink  and  cannot  control  our  desire  for  alcoholic  stimu- 
lant, we  become  drunkards.  When  we  steal  and  there  is  no 
fear  of  punishment,  we  want  the  earth.  When  at  the  head 
of  government,  and  there  is  no  effective  opposition,  we 
become  autocrats  and  usurpers.  If  we  are  socially  inclined 
and  have  plenty  of  money,  it  will  be  freely  invested  to 
acquire  social  distinction.  We  could  not  do  these  and  other 
things   without  possessing  the   sixth   or  super-sense. 

There  should  be  no  discussion  over  the  existence  and 
control  of  the  sixth,  or  super-sense.  We  are  living  evidences 
of  that  fact.  Nothing  but  a  super-sense  could  have  given 
us  control  of  earthly  creations.  We  came  into  the  world 
as  vertebrate  animals,  only  a  grade  above  the  anthropoid 
ape.  We  have  developed  from  that  pre-man  existence 
into  human  beings.  If  the  five  senses  provided  mental 
force  to  maintain  the  existence  of  animal  life  during  all 
the  hundreds  of  thousands  of  years  without  causing  greater 
development,  what  has  been  the  uplifting  force  that  has 
elevated  mankind  to  the  world  supremacy?  "God,'*  some 
readers  will  answer.  Then  why  did  not  God  create  man 
fully  developed  at  the  beginning?  "He  did,"  the  biblical 
student  will  reply.  "But  Eve  was  tempted  and  God  turned 
Adam  and  Eve  out  of  the  Garden  of  Eden."  If  that  be 
true,  as  a  punishment  God  dropped  both  of  them  into  the 
abyss  of  bestialism  over  five  hundred  thousand  years  ago. 
Evidences  of  the  existence  of  prehistoric  man  in  the  Plio- 
cene age  have  been  discovered  and  are  on  record.  Man- 
kind could  not  have  had  much  of  God's  help  since  that  time, 
for  it  has  required  countless  generations  to  overcome  God's 


64       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

alleged  displeasure,  and  put  us  on  our  feet  in  this  day  and 
age,  if  we  are  to  believe  the  Adam  and  Eve  story. 

There  surely  is  no  dispute  over  the  existence  of  the 
five  senses,  touch,  taste,  smell,  sight  and  hearing,  or  that 
they  are  mental  forces  that  actuate  cellular  activities, 
whenever  they  are  called  into  use.  That  is  proof  that  the 
senses  are  a  mental  force,  and  that  there  must  be  a  sixth 
sense,  to  actuate  brain  cellular  activities  not  possessed  by 
other  vertebrate  animals.  We  know  that  the  sixth  sense 
is  located  in  the  mentality,  and  is  its  governing  mental 
influence,  because  it  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  five  senses 
that  incite  ability  to  secure  information  and  knowledge 
from  outside  sources.  Also,  we  are  convinced  that  the 
sixth  sense  does  not  enliven  or  increase  the  acuteness  of 
the  five  senses,  for  animals  that  depend  upon  the  use  of 
these  senses  for  existence  have  sharper  vision  and  more 
acute  hearing.  The  apparent  duties  of  the  sixth  sense  are 
to  store  away  in  the  memory  cells  the  information  and 
knowledge  communicated  by  the  five  senses,  and  to  provide 
mental  force  for  calling  into  activity  brain  centers  as  here- 
tofore explained. 

Life,  earthly  activity,  animates  and  controls  the  existence 
of  every  known  living  thing  in  creation.  The  secret  of  life 
is  hidden  from  us.  We  exist  by  means  of  that  secret,  but 
have  no  knowledge  of  the  cause  of  its  activities.  W^e  see 
life,  death,  procreation  and  growth  of  new  life  in  all  the 
kingdoms  of  creation.  Nature  seems  to  be  based  on  a 
fundamental  law  of  upgrowth  and  destruction,  one  succeed- 
ing the  other  as  years,  centuries  and  ages  elapse.  Midst 
all  this  process  of  life  and  death,  we  are  not  permitted  to 
delve  into  the  mysteries  or  causes  of  animal  or  vegetable 
existence.  We  do  know  that  life  is  kind  to  us  when  we 
treat  it  as  a  benefactor.  We  also  are  aware  that  when  we 
abuse  the  Ufe  that  sustains  and  animates  us,  we  are  com- 
pelled to  pay  the  penalty  of  that  self -abuse.  That  penalty 
is  pain,  disease,  suffering  and  death.   Our  own  consciences, 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  66 

thoughts,  experiences  and  observations  have  warned  us 
of  the  dangers  of  wrong  doing.  Oftentimes  these  warnings 
pass  unheeded.  The  exhilaration  of  health,  the  gratification 
of  excesses,  indulgences,  and  other  causes  stifle  the  voice 
of  conscience,  and  it  is  only  when  stricken  by  the  hand  of 
adversity  that  we  feel  the  need  of  assistance.  Then  we 
usually  look  for  supernatural  aid.  There  is  our  mistake. 
Life  has  been  our  benefactor.  Life  also  may  be  made  our 
savior. 


66  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  EIGHT 

THAT  AS  CHILDREN  OF  NATURE,  INSPIRED  AND  ANIMATED  BY 
LIFE,  WE  SHOULD  NOT  ABUSE  THE  GIFTS  OF  OUR  BENEFAC- 
TOR BY  DELIBERATELY  ASSISTING  IN  THEIR  DESTRUCTION, 
THROUGH  ACTS  OF  WRONG  DOING.    GOOD  HEALTH,  REA- 
SONABLE    ENJOYMENT,     PROSPERITY     IN     WORLDLY 
AFFAIRS,     INTELLECTUAL    SUCCESS,    AND    A    LONG 
EARTHLY  EXISTENCE,  FOLLOWED  BY  IMMORTAL- 
ITY, WILL  BE  OUR  REWARD  FOR  RIGHT  LIVING 
AND  RIGHT  DOING 

THE  sixth,  or  super-sense,  is  our  means  of  earthly  and 
eternal  salvation,  if  its  strength  and  ability  to  aid  us 
are  properly  employed.  The  sixth  sense  is  not  a  mental 
function,  or  a  brain  cellular  center  that  controls  certain  activ- 
ities. It  is  a  mental  energy,  a  mental  force  that  incites  the 
mental  and  physical  activities  of  the  brain  cellular  organism. 
It  is  a  controlling  force  that  will  either  overcome  tendencies 
for  wrong  doing,  or  give  them  strength  to  ruin  our  mental 
and  physical  health  and  vigor.  There  is  good  reason  for  the 
belief  that  we  are  possessed  with  the  spirit  of  a  guardian 
angel  to  watch  over  our  welfare,  also  with  an  agent  or 
demon  whose  duty  it  is  to  drive  us  to  desperation  and  de- 
spair when  the  influence  of  the  sixth  sense  is  considered. 
The  sixth,  or  super-sense,  is  the  vital  energy  that  inspires 
right  doing,  which  means  good  thoughts  and  deeds,  when 
our  mentality  is  under  proper  cellular  control.  But  if  our 
brain  cellular  control  was  created  by  thoughts  and  acts  of 
wrong  doing,  this  same  vital  energy,  the  sixth  or  super- 
sense,  will  incite  and  speed  up  our  desires  for  wrong  doing. 
The  sixth,  or  super-sense,  is  simply  the  force  or  energy  that 
enlivens  and  creates  activities.  It  incites  and  controls  our 
mental  training  either  for  good  or  evil  purposes.  It  is  the 
impulse  that  develops  brain  and  nerve  cells  and  causes 
their  activities.    It  excites  our  thoughts,  desires,  passions. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD 


67 


acts  and  deeds.  It  is  the  force,  energy  and  impulse  that 
enables  us  to  do  things  through  the  medium  of  the  mentality. 
The  sixth,  or  super-sense,  is  to  human  the  mind  what  steam 
is  to  the  steam  engine.   It  is  its  propelling  power. 

When  the  mentality  is  not  under  the  control  of  good  in- 
fluences, and  is  strongly  developed,  the  sixth,  or  super- 
sense,  will  be  the  agent  of  great  wrong  doing.  It  will  incite 
the  mentality  to  prompt  thoughts  and  deeds  of  a  cruel, 
heartless  nature  that  will  cause  great  public  and  personal 
distress.  A  salutary  contrary  result  will  ensue  when  the 
sixth,  or  super-sense,  inspires  a  mentality  that  is  dominated 
by  influences  for  right  doing.  We  do  right  or  wrong  in 
accordance  with  the  controlling  influence  of  our  mental- 
ities. But  that  control  may  be  changed  by  the  use  of  the 
sixth,  or  super-sense,  which  calls  up  our  mental  activities. 
That  principle  is  employed  in  every  field  of  our  mental 
training.  We  learn  a  foreign  language  by  careful  study 
and  practice.  We  become  proficient  in  penmanship,  or  any 
mechanical  art,  in  the  same  manner.  We  learn  to  box, 
swim,  or  any  other  exercise,  by  physical  and  mental  effort, 
and  our  lives  are  a  continuous  history  of  mental  and  physi- 
cal training  under  the  influence  of  our  mentalities,  energized 
by  the  sixth,  or  super-sense.  The  regeneration  of  the  men- 
tality may  be  accomplished  in  the  same  manner  that  mental 
training  is  derived. 

Suppose  a  mentality  is  influenced  by  desires  for  drink, 
evil  associates,  use  of  tobacco,  profanity,  or  other  acts  of 
wrong  doing,  and  its  possessor  wants  to  redeem  himself 
from  their  harmful  influences.  What  should  he  do?  First, 
remember  that  these  habits  are  the  result  of  mental  train- 
ing, of  which  there  must  have  been  a  beginning,  followed 
by  moderate  use  until  the  habit  was  acquired.  The  thing 
to  be  done  is  to  begin  a  mental  training  that  will  counteract 
and  finally  overcome  the  evil  influences  that  caused  the 
wrong  doing.  The  regeneration  is  entirely  a  mental  propo- 
sition. The  use  of  drugs,  as  antidotes,  could  not  effect  the 


68       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

reform.  A  mental  effort  must  be  made  to  induce  the  sixth, 
or  super-sense,  to  co-operate  in  the  work  of  regeneration. 
That  result  must  be  obtained  by  prayer.  The  sixth  sense, 
that  incites  mental  activities  for  wrong  doing,  must  be  con- 
verted, and  caused  to  inspire  activities  for  right  doing,  not 
only  for  the  renunciation  and  overcoming  of  bad  habits, 
but  for  right  doing  in  all  methods  of  life. 

Prayer  is  the  key  to  open  the  way  to  salvation.  It  will 
influence  and  upbuild  a  desire  for  mental  regeneration; 
and  that  means,  in  time,  a  control  of  the  mentality  for 
right  doing  through  the  inspiration  of  the  sixth,  or  super- 
sense.  The  beginning  of  the  mental  training,  to  accomplish 
this  happy  result,  will  be  when  we  go  down  on  our  knees, 
in  seclusion  and  alone,  and  pray  for  strength  to  do  right,  to 
see  the  right  and  to  live  right.  There  should  be  no  prayers 
for  strength  to  stop  the  use  of  tobacco,  drink  or  any  bad 
habit.  Usually  such  prayers  incite  greater  desire  for  these 
deleterients.  Prayers  for  a  control  of  the  mentality  for 
right  doing  are  needed  to  reform  our  mentalities.  Picking 
specks  out  of  a  sea  of  sin  will  not  cause  mental  redemption. 
Wrong  doing  of  all  kinds  falls  before  prayer,  when  it  is 
heartfelt,  sincere,  earnest  and  honest.  Prayers  should  be  a 
means  of  upbuilding  mental  control  for  right  doing,  and 
hypocritical,  meaningless,  dishonest  prayers  will  fail  to 
accomplish  that  purpose.  We  must  pray  for  strength  to  do 
right,  because  right  doing  will  overthrow  the  influence  of 
wrong  doing.  We  must  pray  to  live  right,  for  when  living 
right  there  will  be  no  bad  habits  to  impair  health,  and  injure 
the  mentality.  We  must  pray  to  see  the  right,  that  we  may 
be  guided  in  all  of  our  efforts  through  life.  We  may  pray 
to  God,  the  Father,  or  to  Life.  The  prayers,  if  sincere 
and  fervent,  will  be  answered  through  a  regenerated  men- 
tality, and  the  sixth,  or  super-sense,  will  supply  us  with  in- 
vigorated energy  to  acquire  greater  intellectual  ability,  and 
better  health,  physical  strength  and  vigor.  Prayers  for  this 
earthly  regeneration  also  will  point  the  way  to  immortality. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  69 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  NINE 

THAT    UNLESS    WE    PROTECT    OUR     MENTALITIES    FROM     THE 

RAVAGES  OF  WRONG  DOING,  WE  CANNOT   EXPECT  TO 

BE  HAPPY  AND   CONTENTED 

THE  possession  of  a  disordered  mentality  is  the  worst 
possible  affliction.  There  can  be  no  peace  of  mind  with- 
out good  mental  control.  Happiness  never  comes  to 
the  person  who  lives  a  life  of  wrong  doing.  There  will  al- 
ways be  discomfort,  discontent,  regrets  and  remorse  to  dis- 
turb the  peace  of  mind.  Occasional  rays  of  mental  sunshine 
may  afford  periods  of  gladness  and  relief,  but  they  soon 
will  be  clouded  by  the  gloom  of  sad,  regretful  thoughts,  and 
life  will  become  more  and  more  miserable.  The  way  to 
protect  the  mentality  from  the  results  of  wrong  doing  is  to 
strengthen  a  desire  to  do  right,  and  to  overcome  the  con- 
trol that  caused  the  unhappiness. 

There  are  so  many  forms  of  wrong  doing  that  it  would 
be  impossible  to  list  them  intelligently.  But  they  may  be 
classed  as  follows:  Any  act  that  injures  self,  either  in 
health  or  mental  comfort,  or  any  act  that  causes  unhappi- 
ness to  others  or  interferes  with  their  material  prosperity, 
or  any  act  that  destroys  public  welfare  or  hinders  public 
progress,  constitutes  an  act  of  wrong  doing.  Any  act  that 
causes  the  downfall  of  well  doing,  and  brings  about  mis- 
fortune and  misery,  may  be  designated  as  the  sum  and 
substance  of  wrong  doing.  The  question  naturally  comes 
up,  how  could  such  acts  indicate  a  disordered  mind? 

No  person  with  good  mental  control  would  cause  injury 
to  himself,  to  others,  or  to  public  welfare.  What  good 
could  be  derived  from  such  conduct  ?  It  is  people  controlled 
by  gross  passions,  inordinate  appetites  and  desires,  inex- 
cusable ambitions  for  wealth  or  power,  uncontrollable 
criminal,  bestial  tendencies,  who  possess  disordered  minds, 
mentalities  not  under  good  control.    They  are  the  people 


70       POR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

whose  habits,  desires,  ambitions,  inclinations  and  tendencies 
cause  the  misery  and  suffering  that  afflict  humanity  and 
hinder  the  world's  progress.  They  are  the  people  who, 
also,  create  the  need  for  courts  of  justice,  and  bring  on 
discontent,  public  uprisings,  wars  and  other  horrors. 

There  is  only  one  means  of  protecting  the  public  from 
the  ravages  of  disordered  mentalities,  and  that  is  mental 
regeneration,  an  individual  reformation  by  individual  effort. 
It  is  impossible  to  call  huge  meetings  of  people  to  consider 
reformation  by  religious  methods,  and  expect  great  good 
to  come  from  them.  The  desire  to  abandon  wrong  doing 
and  take  up  right  doing  does  not  become  firmly  seated  in 
the  mind  at  such  meetings.  Discussion  and  argument  will 
seldom  cause  a  person  to  give  up  a  bad  habit,  or  abandon 
undesirable  traits  of  character.  The  only  way  to  reach 
a  man's  reasoning  faculties,  and  convince  him  that  wrong 
doing  is  not  profitable,  or  desirable,  is  to  show  him  that  his 
disordered  mind  will  eventually  prove  to  be  his  downfall. 

In  olden  times,  people  with  disordered  mentalities  were 
beaten  and  scourged  to  drive  out  the  devil  that  beset  them. 
They  were  supposed  to  be  possessed  with  demons.  In  mod- 
ern days,  many  persons  believe  that  disordered  minds  result 
from  lack  of  spiritual  uplift,  and  that  sin  and  desire  for 
wrong  doing  may  be  banished  by  confessions  of  faith,  and 
by  confirmation  according  to  church  creeds  and  regulations. 
Others  think  that  there  are  good  and  evil  spirits,  who  con- 
trol our  destinies,  and  that  we  are  fated  from  the  beginning 
to  be  good,  or  bad.  But  few  persons  are  willing  to  admit 
that  there  might  be  such  a  thing  as  mental  self-control 
that  is  independent  of  outside  influences.  As  a  matter  of 
fact,  that  conclusion  is  indisputable  from  a  common-sense 
standpoint.  Our  mentalities  are  physical  functions  not  asso- 
ciated in  any  way  with  supernatural  or  extraneous  influ- 
ences. Every  mortal  stands  alone,  so  far  as  the  control  of 
his  mentality  is  concerned.  He  is  its  king  and  master,  its 
lord  and  possible  reformer.   The  only  things  from  outside 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  71 

sources  that  man  has  to  contend  with  in  developing  and 
controlling  his  mentality,  are  objectionable  traits  of  charac- 
ter handed  down  to  him  by  a  long  line  of  ancestors. 

If  man  by  wrong  mental  training,  or  the  inheritance 
of  objectionable  traits,  has  created  a  disordered  mentality, 
what  is  to  prevent  his  reforming  that  mentality  by  a  system 
of  mental  training  for  right  doing?  Not  a  thing  in  the 
world.  Man  is  in  absolute  control  of  his  own  reformation. 
He  may  change  the  mentality,  or  allow  it  to  complete  his 
downfall.  It  is  a  matter  of  his  own  discretion.  Should  the 
brain  cells  that  constitute  the  mentality  be  intact,  and  not 
injured  by  excesses,  in  such  a  manner  as  to  impair  their 
vigor,  there  is  no  reason  why  the  control  cannot  be  changed, 
and  the  mentality  freed  from  its  objectionable  influences. 
The  way  to  mental  freedom  is  so  simple,  so  easy,  that  it 
does  not  seem  reasonable.  The  old  control  for  wrong  doing 
must  be  supplanted  by  a  strong  desire  for  right  doing. 
That  desire  is  created  and  strengthened  by  the  development 
of  brain  cells  that  prompt  better  thoughts,  and  better  deeds. 
Prayer,  sincere,  devout  prayer  for  strength  to  do  right,  if 
persisted  in  for  a  sufficient  length  of  time,  will  bring  about 
the  change.  The  prayer  should  be  offered  in  secret  and 
alone.  It  should  be  the  result  of  mental  effort  when  the 
mind  is  under  perfect  control.  There  also  should  always 
be  a  desire  in  the  mind  for  strength  to  do  right.  It  is  a 
question  of  training  the  mentality  for  right  doing,  and  of 
overcoming  the  tendency  for  wrong  doing.  If  a  mentality 
is  controlled  by  a  desire  for  wrong  doing,  the  person  will 
do  wrong.  That  desire  must  be  supplanted  by  a  desire  to  do 
right.  Wrong  doing  is  prompted  by  a  disordered  mentality. 
The  ability  to  do  right  emanates  from  a  sane  mentality. 


72  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  TEN 

THAT    MAN    IS    HIS   OWN   LORD   AND    MASTER,   AND   THAT    HIS 

RIGHT   OR   WRONG  DOING   RESULTS   FROM   EITHER   GOOD 

OR   HARMFUL    MENTAL   TRAINING 

IT  IS  next  to  impossible  to  convince  people  that  they 
are  not  controlled  by  supernatural  power.  Every  re- 
ligious belief  and  theory  ever  promulgated,  except 
Buddhism,  advocates  and  urges  that  we  rely  on  God  for  our 
protection  and  salvation.  No  sane  person  could  deny  the 
existence  of  a  Supreme  Being,  an  All-Powerful  Influence, 
a  God,  a  Creator.  But  as  for  God's  controlling  the  affairs 
of  man,  that  is  another  proposition.  God,  the  dispenser  of 
justice  and  mercy,  would  not  make  such  a  bad  mess  of 
human  affairs,  as  is  plainly  apparent,  were  He  in  charge  of 
them.  Again,  look  at  the  various  colors  and  types  of  the 
human  race,  degrees  of  intelligence,  methods  of  living,  and 
other  divergences  from  the  bible  man,  and  then  wonder  why 
God  created  them  so  differently.  These  same  differences, 
and  varieties  in  types  and  species,  may  be  found  in  every 
group  or  family  in  each  of  the  three  kingdoms,  the  animal, 
vegetable  and  mineral.  Man  belongs  to  the  animal  king- 
dom. If  man  is  the  only  type  of  creation  directly  under 
God's  influence  and  guidance,  why  is  there  so  much  diver- 
sity and  difference  in  his  appearance,  color,  intelligence  and 
conditions?  We  are  told  that  man  was  created  after  the 
image  of  God.   That  must  be  a  mistake. 

But  the  most  convincing  evidence  that  God  does  not 
directly  control  the  affairs  of  man  is  the  existence  of  so 
many  horrors,  so  much  misery  and  suffering,  bloodshed  and 
strife,  crime  and  sinfulness,  such  a  wide  difference  between 
prosperous  and  impoverished  conditions,  so  few  rich  and  so 
many  poor  people,  such  a  lack  of  practical  learning,  and 
such  a  mass  of  ignorance,  such  a  greed  for  rapine  and 
plunder,  and  so  many  who  are  defenseless.    This  remark- 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  78 

able  and  regretable  state  of  affairs  could  not  exist  under 
God's  guidance.  As  proof  of  that  assertion,  witness  the 
control  and  governing  influence  of  the  universe.  Nothing 
is  left  to  chance.  All  of  the  countless  worlds  of  this  vast, 
measureless  expanse  move  with  majesty,  certainty  and 
regularity  in  the  various  orbits  to  which  they  have  been  as- 
signed. There  is  no  confusion,  mishap,  or  misfortune  in 
this  world-moving  universe  to  which  this  earth  and  its 
creations  belong. 

Man  is  one  of  God's  creations,  one  of  the  multitudes 
of  creatures  to  be  found  on  earth.  He  is  an  animal  with  a 
superior  mentality,  a  plain,  simple  vertebrate  animal,  hardly 
well  enough  equipped  mentally  to  keep  himself  out  of 
trouble.  Man  assumes  that  he  is  God's  chosen  creation,  and 
that  God  nearly  two  thousand  years  ago  sent  his  Son, 
conceived  by  an  angel,  to  prepare  mankind  for  future 
salvation.  If  God  could  send  an  angel  to  impregnate  a 
woman,  He  could  as  well  have  changed  the  mentalities  of 
humanity,  and  afforded  all  an  equal  chance  in  the  world. 
He  could  have  made  all  mankind  the  same  color,  and  in  this 
way  have  given  impetus  to  the  spirit  of  brotherly  love.  Or 
God  could  have  put  mankind  in  affluent  circumstances,  and 
enabled  each  person  to  do  nothing  but  drink  sunshine  and 
sing  hymns  of  praise.  That  is  what  angels  are  supposed 
to  do. 

How  much  better  it  is  to  worship  God  as  the  Supreme 
Creator,  than  to  regard  Him  as  an  arbiter  and  an  incapable 
controller  of  man's  destiny.  We  implore  God  to  forgive 
sins,  for  which  our  mentalities  are  responsible.  We  be- 
seech Him  to  extend  mercy,  when  we  are  coming  red- 
handed  from  the  scene  of  our  wrong  doing.  We  implore 
God  to  give  us  strength  to  successfully  manage  business 
enterprises  which  we  know  were  established  for  the  pur- 
pose of  fleecing  fellow  beings.  We  are  constantly  pleading 
with  God  for  substantial  favors,  and  are  always  forgetting 
that  accumulating  wealth,  or  seeking  social,  political,  or 


74       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

other  preferments,  or  doing  other  acts,  are  man's,  not  God's, 
affairs.  God  does  not,  and  never  has,  controlled  or  in- 
fluenced man  in  any  of  his  undertakings.  That  is  as  sure 
as  man  exists.  Were  this  not  true,  man  would  have  been 
a  different  being.  There  would  have  been  no  squalor  or 
poverty,  no  great  misfortunes,  no  grave  dangers,  afflictions, 
wars  or  other  forms  of  distress.  God  would  have  made 
a  real  man  out  of  the  same  animal  now  designated  as  man. 
And  it  would  have  been  done  without  resorting  to  immacu- 
late conception. 

Mental  training  for  right  doing  must,  and  will,  prove  to 
be  man's  salvation.  Wrong  doing  destroys  mental  and 
physical  welfare.  Right  doing  upbuilds  everything  with 
which  it  comes  in  contact.  If  a  mistake  is  made,  we  do 
wrong,  and  the  wrong  doing  is  caused  by  mental  activity. 
When  a  mistake  is  rectified,  it  is  done  by  mental  activity 
for  right  doing.  Every  right  and  every  wrong  in  human 
affairs  results  from  mental  activity.  A  mentality  trained  to 
do  right  will  lead  its  possessor  over  the  road  to  good  health, 
contentment,  happiness  and  prosperity.  A  mentality  con- 
trolled by  a  cellular  activity  for  wrong  doing  will  cause  its 
possessor  to  gradually  descend  into  the  depths  of  bestialism, 
and  finally  into  oblivion. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  76 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  ELEVEN 

THAT     THE     INFLUENCE     KNOWN     AS     LIFE     MUST     BE     THE 

CREATOR  AND  CONTROLLER  OF  THE  UNIVERSE.    aLSO  THE 

GOD,    THE    FATHER,    THE    OMNIPOTENT    POWER    WE 

WORSHIP  AS  OUR  LORD  AND  MASTER.    WE  KNOW 

OF   NO  OTHER   SUPERNATURAL   INFLUENCE 

HUMANITY  has  been  groping  in  the  dark  for  the  exist- 
ence of  a  God  with  supernatural  power  to  control 
mundane  affairs  and  answer  to  the  beck  and  call  of 
mankind,  as  individuals,  since  the  beginning  of  history. 
No  such  supernatural  influence,  or  God,  of  whom  man  is  the 
image,  has  ever  been  found  or  heard  from.  It  is  true  that 
Moses,  and  others  of  the  bible  patriarchs,  were  supposed  to 
have  seen  and  received  messages  from  God.  In  modem 
times,  Joseph  Smith  and  Brigham  Young,  founders  of  the 
Mormon  faith,  were  said  to  have  received  revelations  from 
God,  or  His  angels.  There  are  others  who  have  alleged  that 
they  were  commanded  by  God  to  perform  certain  acts, 
but  as  a  matter  of  public  welfare  most  of  these  self-styled 
instruments  of  God  have  been  confined  in  asylums.  Seeing 
God  is  very  much  like  seeing  spirits  of  the  departed.  Sane, 
self -controlled  minds  do  not  see  them. 

Seeing  and  communicating  with  life  is  entirely  a  differ- 
ent proposition.  We  see  life,  feel  it  and  realize  its  presence 
in  our  every  wakeful  moment.  We  know  that  life  is  our 
creator  and  supporter,  but  we  do  not  understand  how  and 
why  it  animates  us  and  everything  else  in  existence.  We 
see  a  beautiful  landscape,  with  the  green  foliage  of  its 
tall,  spreading  trees,  its  pretty  swards  of  grass,  its  glades, 
hills,  and  gurgling  brook,  its  birds,  butterflies,  and  other 
animated  life,  all  made  more  attractive  by  the  glittering, 
glimmering  sunshine.  We  then  wonder  how  life  could 
create  such  a  charming  bit  of  nature.  We  witness  throngs 
of  busy,  restless  people,  knowing  that  there  are  also  bil- 


76       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

lions  of  other  human  beings  engrossed  in  the  world's  activ- 
ities, and  feel  that  through  them  life  is  well  represented. 
We  examine  intricate  and  marvelous  pieces  of  machinery 
and  other  mechanical  creations,  resulting  from  the  efforts 
of  man's  mentality,  and  wonder  how  these  marvels  could 
have  been  devised.  We  look  upon  remarkable  examples  of 
art,  and  hear  what  genius  can  do  in  musical  composition, 
eloquence  and  other  developments  of  intellectual  attainment, 
and  then  ask  ourselves  if  God  is  responsible  for  all  of  these 
things.  The  popular  reply  would  be,  yes.  But  who  is  God, 
and  where  is  he  located?  God  is  our  Creator  and  He  is 
everywhere,  we  are  told. 

So  is  life  everywhere.  Life  inspires  beauty  in  the  flower, 
and  creates  the  charming  landscape.  Life  causes  the  birds 
to  warble  and  trill  their  songs,  and  it  grows  the  forests, 
and  covers  the  trees  with  foliage.  Life  creates  and  supports 
the  busy  throngs  of  people  that  populate  the  world,  and  calls 
forth  the  genius  of  the  men  who  invent  wonderful  ma- 
chinery, and  who  create  beautiful  examples  of  art.  Life 
inspires  the  efforts  of  orators,  musicians,  authors  and  other 
people,  whose  intellectual  attainments  arouse  public  admir- 
ation. Life  does  everything  t?%at  causes  existence  to  be 
beautiful,  charming  and  interesting.  Life,  also,  is  respon- 
sible for  all  disasters,  aside  from  those  caused  by  the  ele- 
ments, all  misery  and  suffering,  all  wars  and  contention,  and 
everything  else  in  the  animal  and  vegetable  kingdoms.  Life 
is  both  a  creative  and  a  destructive  agent. 

Mention  has  been  made  that  through  a  wise  provision 
of  the  Creator  each  separate  and  distinct  unit,  form,  species 
and  variety  of  animal  and  vegetable  life  has  been  endowed 
with  procreative  ability,  that  enables  it  to  remain  independ- 
ent of  other  forms  or  units  of  creative  existence.  One  unit, 
form,  species  or  family  cannot  procreate  with  another  unit, 
form  or  family.  That  is  not  all  of  the  accuracy  and  reli- 
ability pertaining  to  the  creation  of  the  animal  and  vege- 
table kingdoms.   The  germ  of  life  contained  in  every  seed, 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  77 

in  every  bit  of  pollen,  every  nut,  and  every  other  manner 
of  propagating  life,  remains  a  secret.  Man,  in  all  of  his 
investigations  and  efforts  to  reproduce  life,  has  been  unable 
to  ascertain  the  cause  of  its  existence.  Life  has  not  re- 
vealed this  secret.  In  all  probability,  life  will  never  do  so. 
Man  would  then  know  how  the  universe  came  into  exis- 
tence, and  the  origin  of  creation.  Also  the  secret  of  the 
Influence  we  designate  as  God. 

What  we,  as  individuals,  should  be  most  interested  in 
is  how  to  make  the  best  of  our  earthly  existence.  Throwing 
away  our  lives,  by  acts  of  wrong  doing,  is  not  what  our 
Creator  intended.  A  bestial,  wicked  man  is  not  a  fit  object 
to  place  in  one  of  nature's  beauty  spots.  We  should  use 
the  means  within  our  ability,  to  make  ourselves  worthy 
of  the  position,  in  mundane  affairs,  in  which  our  Creator 
has  placed  us.  That  must  be  done  by  imploring  life  to  come 
to  our  rescue.  Life  is  our  God,  our  Creator.  There  is  no 
other  God.  There  could  be  no  other  supernatural  power  to 
guide  our  existence,  or  it  would  have  made  itself  manifest 
long  ago.  We  have  watched  and  prayed,  and  have  pleaded 
and  prayed  again  and  again  for  divine  protection  from  our 
troubles.  We  have  beseeched  and  implored,  times  without 
number,  for  God's  intervention  and  guidance,  when  we 
have  been  beset  with  great  wars,  and  other  methods  of  hu- 
man destruction.  That  protection  and  intervention  has 
never  been  bestowed.  It  will  never  come  to  our  assistance, 
because  there  is  no  personal  God,  such  as  we  have  been 
beseeching.  Each  of  us,  so  far  as  our  own  conduct  is  con- 
cerned, is  his  own  god,  and  Ufe  is  our  protector,  when 
properly  employed.  We  were  created  with  a  germ  of  life 
that  causes  us  to  be  an  independent  unit  in  nature's  domain. 
We  have  no  mental  communication  with  any  other  species 
of  life,  and  there  is  no  method,  supernatural  or  otherwise, 
of  reaching  our  mentalities,  except  through  our  own  indi- 
vidual efforts.  Life  placed  us  at  the  head  of  worldly  crea- 
tions, but  there  our  jurisdiction  ends.    We  cannot  reach 


78       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

upwards  for  information,  knowledge,  protection  or  guid- 
ance, during  this  existence.  Life  has  provided  against  that 
endeavor.  We  must  take  care  of  ourselves  here  on  earth, 
and  when  passing  away  from  this  world  we  may  be  car- 
ried on  to  another  and  better  existence.  If  so,  life  then 
will  again  be  our  benefactor,  provided  we  are  worthy  of 
that  blessing.  Life  affords  us  opportunity  to  become  eligible 
to  that  transcendence.  Is  it  better  to  sink  into  oblivion,  or 
to  become  worthy  of  immortality?    Think  it  over. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  79 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  TWELVE 

THAT  MAN  SHOULD  TAKE  ADVANTAGE  OF  THE  OPPORTUNITIES 

LIFE  AFFORDS.     HE     THEN     WOULD   NEVER   HAVE   REASON 

TO  BE  DISCONTENTED,  UNHAPPY  AND  UNFORTUNATE 

LIFE  is  kind  and  good  to  all  who  are  willing  to  subject 
themselves  to  mental  training  that  will  develop  and 
make  useful  their  latent,  innate  abilities.  The  misfor- 
tunes of  most  people  are  brought  on  themselves  by  their  own 
acts  of  folly.  Grain  will  not  grow  abundantly  in  a  field  over- 
run with  weeds  and  thistles.  A  mentality  is  also  a  product  of 
nature,  and  will  not  prompt  good  thoughts  and  deeds,  when 
its  control  is  influenced  by  wrong  doing.  To  achieve  success 
and  be  happy  and  contented,  we  should  cultivate  our  minds 
and  cause  them  to  lead  us  into  ways  that  are  useful  and 
fraught  with  good  results.  We  also  should  stop  thinking 
that  our  acts  are  controlled  by  a  supernatural  influence,  or 
that  our  thoughts  originate  from  outside  sources.  Nothing 
could  be  farther  from  the  truth.  Thoughts  are  products  of 
our  own  mentalities.  They  are  prompted  by  our  own  in- 
dividual efforts. 

Our  thought  functions  are  controlled  by  the  brain  centers 
of  the  mass  or  myriads  of  cells  and  nerves  that  constitute 
our  mentalities.  Each  center  has  its  function,  and  it  con- 
trols certain  cells  that  cause,  when  actuated,  mental  or 
physical  movements.  Life  is  the  influence  that  actuates 
these  cells,  and  the  six  senses  call  them  into  action.  It  has 
been  heretofore  explained  that  all  information  and  knowl- 
edge acquired  by  man  from  outside  sources  result  from 
the  use  of  the  five  senses,  touch,  taste,  smell,  sight  and 
hearing.  These  senses  are  connected  by  sensory  nerves 
with  the  cells  of  the  brain  centers  that  control  them.  With- 
out their  use  we  could  not  obtain  information  or  knowledge, 
not  acquired  from  our  latent  abilities.  The  fact  may  easily 
be  ascertained  by  consulting  the  means  employed  to  educate 


80       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

deaf,  dumb,  and  blind  people.  The  sixth,  or  super-sense, 
controls  thought  and  mental  abilities  awakened  by  problems 
that  required  careful  study  to  solve  them.  It  also  controls 
the  memory,  and  when  mental  effort,  aroused  by  prayer  or 
important  emergencies,  actuates  the  mentality,  the  sixth 
sense  guides  and  renders  the  effort  effective.  The  sixth 
sense  is  most  important,  when  we  are  desirous  of  engaging 
in  momentous  undertakings.  It  also  enables  us  to  invent 
and  devise  useful  things,  and  to  do  everything  that  we  do, 
except  to  see,  hear,  touch,  taste  and  smell.  And  these 
senses  are  in  control  of  the  sixth  sense,  because  that  sense 
arouses  mental  effort,  when  the  brain  cells  are  active  and 
vigorous.  All  mental  activity,  however,  is  subject  to  the 
influence  of  life.  We  could  not  use  our  mentaUties,  or  any 
of  our  physical  functions,  without  the  assistance  of  life. 
Life  enables  us  to  use  the  sixth  or  super-sense  by  en- 
Hvening  the  cells  of  the  centers  through  which  they  are 
controlled.  Should  any  of  these  cells  become  impaired  or 
useless,  the  cellular  control  could  not  be  actuated.  Brain 
diseases,  overindulgences,  and  other  excesses  that  cause 
mental  failures,  also  produce  the  same  result.  Life  cannot 
serve  us  faithfully  unless  we  cooperate  by  preserving  and 
keeping  our  physical  and  mental  functions  useful,  and  in 
good  condition.  For  that  reason,  we  should  train  our  men- 
talities to  reject  thought  that  upbuilds  desires  for  wrong 
doing.  Our  mental  and  physical  functions  cannot  be  pre- 
served and  kept  useful  in  any  other  way.  Thoughts  awaken 
desires.  Desires  upbuild  ability  to  do  either  right  or  wrong. 
If  we  think  wrong,  we  are  likely  to  do  wrong.  Rejecting 
thoughts  of  wrong  doing  should  be  our  first  step  in  mental 
training. 

There  is  a  prejudice  against  resorting  to  prayers  for 
assistance,  among  people  not  in  the  habit  of  attending  relig- 
ious worship.  Others  prefer  to  let  some  one  else  pray  for 
them.  Both  classes  of  people  are  wrong.  Prayer,  rightly 
implored,  is  the  strongest  and  best  mental  upbuilding  in- 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  81 

fluence  under  our  control.  But  to  enjoy  its  beneficence  we 
must  pray  for  ourselves.  Prayer  is  a  means  of  individual 
regeneration.  It  will  not  be  eflfective  in  any  other  way,  except 
as  a  suggestive  influence.  We  may  hear  prayers  and  be 
influenced  to  pray  for  ourselves.  Prayer  is  a  method  of 
mental  training  that  should  not  be  neglected.  We  pray, 
through  the  use  of  our  mentalities,  and  life  responds  to 
our  pleadings.  When  we  pray  to  do  right,  to  think  right, 
to  see  the  right,  we  are  upbuilding  a  desire  for  right  doing. 
The  more  frequently  we  pray,  the  greater  will  be  our  mental 
regeneration.  Praying  to  do  right  will  not  create  a  crank 
of  any  person.  People  who  become  cranks  through  the  in- 
fluence of  prayer  have  been  wasting  their  prayerful  efforts 
by  praying  for  impossibilities.  Upbuilding  the  mentality 
for  right  doing,  either  by  prayer  or  in  any  other  manner, 
is  our  only  method  of  self -re  formation.  If  we  think  right, 
we  shall  do  right.  There  is  too  much  wrong  doing,  or  there 
would  not  be  so  much  suffering,  misery  and  discontent. 


82  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  THIRTEEN 

THAT  THE  GREAT  PROBLEM  OF  MORTAL  EXISTENCE  WILL  NOT 

BE    SOLVED    UNTIL    WE    LEARN    WHY     MAN    WAS    CREATED 

WITH     A    SUPERMENTALITY    AND    THEN     PERMITTED    TO 

TAKE  POSSESSION   OF  THE   WORLD  AND   ITS   CREATIONS 

THERE  could  be  no  question  concerning  our  absolute 
control  of  earthly  activities.  We  are  lords  and  masters 
over  all  mundane  creations,  except  ourselves.  We 
have  not  yet  learned  to  control  our  greed  and  passions,  and 
to  enjoy  the  many  benefactions  which  have  been  bestowed 
on  mankind.  Wealth  is  not  satisfactory  when  our  cupidity 
keeps  on  demanding  still  greater  riches.  Desire  fails  to 
please  when  we  are  constantly  seeking  new  indulgences. 
Conquest  does  not  appease  our  greed  for  further  agrandize- 
ment  when  we  are  always  seeking  other  fields  to  conquer. 
Demands  for  stimulants  cannot  be  sated  if  no  curb  is  put  on 
such  cravings.  Animal  proclivities  and  tendencies  will  not 
be  restrained  if  no  effort  is  made  to  check  their  harmful 
trend.  Slums  and  dens  of  vice  will  continue  to  fill  our  social 
structure  with  criminals,  vagabonds,  tramps  and  dissolute, 
disreputable  people  as  long  as  drink  and  opiates  are  manu- 
factured and  sold.  Poverty,  misery,  suffering  and  ignorance 
will  continue  to  prevail  until  stamped  out  by  the  leveling  up 
of  individual  mental  energy  and  strength.  That  will  never  be 
done  as  long  as  we  abuse  and  misuse  our  mentalities.  Such 
a  sweeping  reform  can  never  be  accomplished  until  each 
individual  thinks  enough  of  his  own  welfare,  and  of  the 
betterment  of  future  generations,  to  first  reform  himself  be- 
fore attempting  the  regeneration  of  others.  Social  and  finan- 
cial conditions  will  never  be  changed  in  any  other  way. 
When  starting  out  to  amass  a  fortune  we  do  not  usually  first 
fill  the  pockets  of  other  people.  The  same  principle  should 
be  applied  to  the  acquirement  of  mental  strength  for  right 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  83 

doing.  If  self -regeneration  is  beneficial  to  our  neighbors, 
it  should  be  good  for  our  own  individual  welfare. 

Most  people  dislike  to  begin  self-regeneration,  fearing 
that  it  will  cause  them  to  submit  to  personal  discomforts 
and  deprivations.  There  should  be  no  pleasure  or  enjoy- 
ment in  any  habit  or  indulgence  that  impairs  health,  or 
interferes  with  the  happiness  of  others.  Many  of  us  have 
loved  ones  dependent  on  our  well  doing.  When  we  indulge 
in  harmful  habits  likely  to  deprive  us  of  the  ability  to  suc- 
cessfully follow  our  vocations,  we  are  jeopardizing  the  wel- 
fare of  those  who  look  to  us  for  support  and  protection. 
Also,  there  is  our  own  health  and  longevity  to  be  consid- 
ered. A  man  or  woman  broken  in  health  by  harmful  indul- 
gences is  not  deserving  of  sympathy.  An  ill-spent  life  con- 
sumed by  the  gratification  of  injurious  habits  and  desires 
is  reprehensible  for  several  reasons.  Such  a  life  does  the 
world  no  good  either  by  act  or  example.  If  the  man  who 
has  wasted  his  existence  in  that  manner  is  a  parent,  it  is 
more  than  likely  that  the  child  has  inherited  the  vices  that 
caused  its  father's  downfall.  There  could  be  no  excuse 
for  the  existence  of  a  person  who  brings  misfortune  into 
the  world,  or  who  will  not  make  strenuous  efforts  to  over- 
come the  baneful  influences  that  cause  wrong  doing. 

There  are  other  vital  reasons  why  we  should  regenerate 
our  mentalities,  and  render  ourselves  worthy  of  the  posi- 
tions we  occupy  as  the  owners  and  controllers  of  earthly 
creations.  It  is  our  duty  to  establish  for  all  time  peace  and 
good  will  on  earth.  There  should  be  abundance,  happiness, 
contentment  and  a  desire  for  right  doing  among  all  people. 
There  should  be  no  more  wars,  strife,  or  contentions  that 
cause  distress,  destruction  and  disaster.  To  bring  about  that 
happy,  desirable  state  of  aflFairs  should  be  our  first  endeavor, 
and  that  may  be  done  by  banishing  from  our  minds  thoughts 
and  desires  for  wrong  doing.  Then  would  come  the  final 
aspiration  of  mankind,  the  crowning  ambition  of  earthly 
life  which  we  seek  in  everlasting,  eternal  existence.    But 


84       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

there  must  be  fitness,  worthiness,  to  entitle  us  to  that  glori- 
ous reward.  We  cannot  expect  to  be  transcended  from  a 
semi-bestial  state  to  an  immaculate  existence  without  pre- 
vious preparation,  that  shall  be  evidence  of  our  worth  and 
excellence.  The  method  of  rendering  ourselves  worthy  of 
immortality  is  well  understood,  but  the  degree  of  fitness  is 
still  in  question,  or  there  would  not  be  so  many  different 
forms  of  religious  worship,  and  such  a  varied  belief  as  to 
how  immortality  may  be  attained.  Among  these  beliefs  are 
the  transmigration  of  souls,  the  day  of  resurrection,  the 
gradual  development  by  means  of  passing  through  a  series 
of  progressive  existences,  the  suspense  of  purgatory,  the  ad- 
vance through  spiritual  life,  and  the  general  pardoning  of 
sinful  transgressions  through  the  intercession  of  the  Re- 
deemer. Any  one  of  these  assumptions  may  be  right,  but 
they  do  not  seem  to  stand  the  test  of  thoughtful  analysis, 
and  therefore  are  subject  to  criticism. 

There  is  not  and  cannot  be  direct  information  on  the 
manner  of  achieving  immortality.  Mankind  was  endowed 
with  a  super-mentality  which  is  being  used  to  civilize  this 
world.  That  mentality  may  also  provide  means  for  our 
becoming  worthy  of  an  immortal  existence,  either  here  or 
elsewhere,  should  that  have  been  a  part  of  the  plan  of  the 
Creator.  We  should  not  forget  how  infinitesimal  we  are, 
as  people,  when  compared  to  the  wonderful  expanse  and 
majesty  of  the  universe  and  its  limitless,  countless  worlds. 
It  is  but  natural  for  us  to  look  up  into  the  sky  and  select 
the  world  that  we  expect  to  occupy  in  our  next  lease  of 
life.  We  have  acquired  the  habit  of  coveting  property  while 
engaged  in  amassing  wealth  here  on  earth.  But  when  it 
comes  to  conquering  other  worlds,  and  turning  them  into 
blissful  heavens,  we  are  attempting  to  go  beyond  our  limit- 
ations. We  are  human  animals,  or  mortals,  if  the  term 
suits  better,  and  must  abide  by  whatever  end  the  Creator 
has  provided  for  us.  It  may  be  oblivion,  or  it  may  be  im- 
mortality, but  this  much  we  do  know:    If  we  are  to  be 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  85 

transcended  it  will  be  because  of  our  worthiness.  God,  or 
the  Creator,  will  not  reward  us  for  wrong  doing. 

Immortality  is  the  keystone  of  every  religious  belief. 
Without  it  each  of  them  would  fall  for  want  of  support. 
The  hope  of  a  future  existence  is  the  most  beautiful  thing 
in  earthly  life.  The  desire  for  that  bUssful  reward  keeps 
many  of  us  virtuous  and  worthy,  and  is  the  incentive  for 
our  greater  efforts  to  do  right.  The  meeting  of  loved  ones 
in  a  charmed  existence,  free  from  care  or  troubles,  is  our 
most  valued  and  cherished  ambition.  It  is  a  hope  we  cling 
to  even  when  our  thoughts  are  embittered  with  the  sorrows 
and  afflictions  that  distress  us  here.  When  a  loved  one 
passes  away,  the  last  kiss  is  a  covenant,  solemnly  and  faith- 
fully resolved,  that  there  will  be  a  heavenly  meeting  and 
that  the  separation  is  only  temporary.  It  is  these  and  kin- 
dred thoughts,  and  aspirations,  that  create  and  constitute 
our  faith  in  immortality,  and  our  belief  in  religious  wor- 
ship. There  w.ould  be  few  church  organizations,  and  still 
fewer  forms  of  religious  worship,  were  it  not  for  our  hope 
of  an  immortal  existence. 

But  there  is  one  almost  unsurmountable  obstacle  that 
hinders  our  attaining  the  essential  worthiness  that  will  lead 
us  to  immortality,  and  that  is  mental  regeneration.  A  men- 
tality actuated  by  thoughts  and  deeds  of  wrong  doing  will 
not  entitle  its  possessor  to  the  immortal  reward.  Seeking 
immortality  cannot  be  a  question  of  church  absolution,  mor- 
tal forgiveness,  or  an  attempt  to  elicit  divine  favor  by  acts 
of  philanthropy.  We  are  creatures  of  mental  activities. 
Our  reputations,  good  or  bad,  are  created  and  maintained 
by  the  thoughts  and  deeds  prompted  by  these  activities. 
No  power  on  earth,  or  elsewhere,  can  change  these  mental 
activities,  except  through  our  own  effort  as  individuals. 
Every  individual  stands  alone  in  that  particular.  Each  and 
every  one  of  us  is  individually  responsible  for  our  thoughts, 
acts  and  deeds.  We  cannot  attribute  them  to  an  outside, 
or  extraneous  influence.    As  individuals  each  of  us  will 


86       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

be  held  responsible  for  the  deeds  instigated  by  our  mental- 
ities. That  is  the  reason  why  church  ceremonies,  vows, 
rituals,  absolutions  and  other  methods  of  purging  sin  can- 
not, will  not,  be  operative.  To  free  ourselves  from  wrong 
doing  and  render  ourselves  worthy  of  immortality,  we  must 
regenerate  our  mentalities.  That  is  an  absolute,  positive 
necessity.  No  other  person  has  power  to  perform  that  duty 
for  us.  Our  mentalities  are  physical  functions,  and  their 
activities  may  only  be  changed  by  individual,  mental  effort. 
It  would  be  a  serious  mistake  for  an  individual  to  believe 
that  he  could  be  freed  from  sin  by  the  act  of  another  per- 
son. Should  such  a  claim  be  made,  ask  that  person  to 
change  the  color  of  your  eyes  by  his  mental  influence,  or 
conferred  authority.  It  would  be  as  possible  for  him  to 
do  so  as  it  would  be  to  absolve  or  free  you  from  wrong 
doing.  Immortality  may  only  be  achieved  by  mental  regen- 
eration. That  lies  within  the  ability  of  every  sane  individual. 
It  means  a  change  of  mental  control,  a  change  to  be  accom- 
plished by  individual  mental  effort. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  87 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  FOURTEEN 

THAT   TOO    MUCH    CANNOT   BE   SAID,   OR   DONE,   TO   CONVINCE 

MANKIND      THAT     OUR     RELIGIOUS     CONVICTIONS     SHOULD 

CONFORM  TO  ACTUAL  FACT,  CONCERNING  THE  CREATION 

OF  THE  WORLD    AND  THE  WORKINGS  OF  NATURE.     ALL 

EFFORTS   TO    KEEP   UP   A   BELIEF   IN    INCONGRUITIES 

SHOULD    BE    STOPPED 

THERE  is  nothing  in  nature,  or  in  the  world's  belong- 
ings, that  will  warrant  a  belief  in  miracles,  spiritual- 
ism, mind  reading,  clairvoyancy,  telepathy,  healing  by 
the  extraneous  thought  process,  or  any  other  method  of  deal- 
ing with  the  supernatural.  Everything  in  worldly  affairs  re- 
sults from  common-place  natural  laws.  The  creation  of  the 
world  was  in  conformity  to  this  same  process.  Think  of  God 
as  the  Supreme  Ruler  of  the  universe,  and  not  as  a  servant 
of  man.  Think  of  the  creation  of  the  world,  when,  at  the 
first  stages,  it  whirled  into  its  orbit  a  burning,  seething 
mass  of  matter.  Think  of  the  succeeding  stages  of  the 
creation — of  the  cloud  formation,  caused  by  the  cooling 
process,  and  of  the  floods  of  water  that  covered  the  world's 
surface.  Think  of  the  countless  years  that  followed,  of  the 
different  periods  of  change  and  preparation  before  animal 
and  vegetable  life  appeared.  Then  came  millions  of  other 
years  of  material  advancement  in  growth  and  progress, 
when  man,  prehistoric  man,  was  developed.  There  was  no 
mystery  about  this  world  upbuilding,  no  supernatural 
methods  employed,  no  secrecy  involved.  It  was  in  accord 
with  natural  conditions  of  growth  and  decadence. 

Everything  in  nature,  today,  is  developed  and  controlled 
by  the  same  method  of  progress.  Development  and  decay, 
birth,  life  and  death,  mark  the  changes  in  worldly  affairs. 
It  is  a  natural  procedure,  such  as  has  been  enforced  since 
the  beginning.  God,  in  person,  has  had  nothing  to  do  ^bout 


88       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

it.  He  does  not  now  watch  over  man's  welfare  and  inter- 
ests, as  is  the  general  supposition. 

There  is  absolutely  nothing  in  the  belief  that  the  super- 
natural controls,  or  interferes  in  any  way  with  our  deeds 
or  our  lives,  and  especially  in  regard  to  the  activities  of  our 
mentalities.  Nothing  could  be  further  from  fact  than  that 
God  stoops  to  convey  gossip,  or  healing  power,  from  one 
person  to  another.  Man  is  too  small,  and  too  insignificant 
an  object  in  mundane  affairs,  to  attract  such  attention. 

From  another  viewpoint,  suppose  that  God,  the  Creator, 
did  consent  to  make  Himself  man's  lackey,  what  is  there 
in  nature  to  warrant  the  belief  that  thought  is  transmit- 
table,  except  when  spoken,  printed,  telegraphed  or  written? 
Thought  cannot  be  classed  as  an  electrical  agent,  nor  does 
it  create  sound  waves.  It  could  not  be  sent  like  a  streak 
of  lightning,  or  transmitted  a  la  phonograph.  Thought  has 
no  carrying  qualities.  It  must  be  conveyed  from  one  per- 
son to  another  by  supernatural  power,  if  at  all.  There  is 
nothing  about  the  air  which  we  breathe  that  would  lead 
a  person  to  think  that  air  would  be  guilty  of  stealing 
thoughts  for  the  purpose  of  disclosing  them.  What  then  is 
the  mystery  about  thought  transmission?  Nothing,  nothing 
whatever.  There  could  be  no  mystery  about  a  thing  that 
does  not  exist.  Were  there  such  a  thing  as  thought  trans- 
mission, we  would  all  constantly  be  in  trouble.  Were  there 
a  divine,  or  infinite  mind,  as  it  is  sometimes  called,  spread 
about  the  world  for  telepathic  mind  reading  and  healing 
purposes,  it  should  either  take  a  lay-off  or  render  itself  use- 
ful to  everybody.  But  the  divine  mind  for  worldly  purposes 
does  not  exist.  It  is  one  of  man's  creations.  God  is  a 
Creator,  not  a  faker.  Following  out  the  logic  of  natural 
conditions  and  their  causes,  there  could  be  no  other  con- 
clusion than  that  Life  is  the  great  Creator  of  the  universe. 
That  being  true,  life  is  the  influence  to  which  we  should 
appeal,  when  supplicating  strength  and  mercy.  Life,  then, 
must  be  the  God  to  whom  we  address  our  prayers.    Life 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  89 

actuates  and  assists  in  developing  our  mentalities,  and  ani- 
mates our  physical  being.  Life  is  our  means  of  mental 
effort.  It  enables  us  to  call  up  thought  by  individual  effort, 
and  to  employ  our  mental  activities  either  for  good  or  for 
evil  purposes.  Wherever  there  is  existence,  there  must 
be  life. 

Good  thought  and  prayerful  efforts  cause  well  doing. 
Evil  thought  and  wicked  desires  lead  to  wrong  doing.  In 
selecting  a  line  of  duty  for  our  future  endeavor  we  have 
the  choice  of  these  conclusions.  We  must  adopt  one  or 
the  other.  There  is  no  alternative,  no  middle  ground.  We 
may  continue  both  good  and  wrong  doing  for  a  time,  but 
unless  an  effort  is  made  to  upbuild  our  mentalities,  and 
cause  them  to  come  to  our  relief,  we  will  drop  lower  and 
lower  in  the  scale  of  wrong  doing.  That  is  the  natural 
result  of  possessing  a  mentality  controlled  by  animal  ten- 
dencies and  proclivities. 

We  must  resort  to  the  use  of  prayer,  to  upbuild  our 
thought  and  desires  for  right  doing.  That  is  the  only  method 
possible  to  adopt  for  the  preservation  of  our  mental  and 
physical  health.  Prayer  creates  commendable  thought, 
and  incites  the  mentality  to  prompt  worthy  deeds.  Lack  of 
prayerful  thought  and  effort  has  the  opposite  mental  effect. 
Prayerful  upbuilding  means  mental  and  bodily  strength 
and  health.  The  want  of  this  upbuilding  process  results  in 
the  acquirement  of  desires  and  habits  that  lead  to  the  de- 
velopment of  indulgences  and  excesses,  and  that  eventu- 
ally bring  about  premature  old  age  and  decadence.  Look 
among  your  acquaintances  for  numerous  examples  of  this 
premature  mental  and  physical  failing. 

Salvation  in  this  world  is  more  important  than  an  appar- 
ent impossibility  of  being  worthy  of  salvation  in  a  future 
existence.  Those  of  us  who  expect  a  future  reward  should 
make  a  strenuous  effort  to  deserve  it.  A  bestial  animal,  al- 
though clothed  in  man's  garments,  will  never  see  heaven. 
We  were  endowed  with  mentalities  to  uplift  ourselves  from 


90       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

an  animal  condition.  That  may  only  be  done  by  employing 
these  mentalities  to  become  good  men  and  women.  It  is 
not  expected  that  we  will  garb  ourselves  like  anchorites 
and  fast  and  pray  until  both  our  mental  and  bodily  health 
are  ruined.  Nor  is  it  necessary  to  abandon  any  habit  or 
pursuit  that  does  not  cause  injury  to  ourselves  or  our 
neighbors.  All  that  is  required  of  us  is  that  we  shall  live 
as  decent,  respectable,  law-abiding  citizens.  This  cannot  be 
done  unless  we  overcome  habits,  desires  and  incHnations 
that  destroy  mental  and  bodily  health,  and  cause  misery  and 
distress  among  our  fellow  beings. 

Prayer,  sincere,  earnest  prayer  in  secret  and  alone,  if 
persistent  and  heartfelt,  will  prove  to  be  our  salvation 
from  all  forms  of  wrong  doing.  The  words  of  a  prayer 
are  meaningless,  if  the  thought  and  effort  are  not  sincere. 
Our  prayerful  appeal  should  be  for  right  doing,  and  for 
strength  to  see  and  know  the  right.  Mouthing  prayers  for 
the  sake  of  uttering  them  is  a  waste  of  time.  Prayers  will 
not  be  efficacious,  if  they  do  not  reach  the  mentality  with 
sincerity  enough  to  prompt  mental  uplift.  There  is  no 
supernatural  power  to  listen  to  our  invocations,  and  to  see 
that  they  are  answered.  Our  prayers  are  only  effective 
when  they  upbuild  a  desire  for  right  doing.  That  process  of 
upbuilding  means  mental  growth  and  development.  Prayers 
are  a  method  of  education,  with  this  difference:  The 
acquisition  of  learning  depends  largely  on  an  ability  to 
memorize.  The  usefulness  of  prayer  results  from  the  de- 
velopment of  thought  and  desires  for  the  overcoming  of 
evil  influences.  Both  are  mental  efforts.  Pray  with  the 
heart  as  well  as  with  words.  Pray  because  you  need  the 
mental  development  that  will  result  from  your  prayerful 
effort.  Pray  as  if  you  could  only  be  saved  by  your  own 
endeavors.  Pray  honestly  and  for  yourself  alone.  No 
other  prayers  will  benefit  you. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  »1 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  FIFTEEN 

THAT   THERE   IS   A   WAY  TO  AVOID   BECOMING   THE   SLAVES   OF 

AN      ANIMAL      NATURE,      AND      OF      THE      EVIL 

TENDENCIES     HANDED    DOWN    THROUGH 

ANCESTRAL   INHERITANCE 

THE  pathway  of  life  is  seldom  strewn  with  blessings  and 
good  fortune.  There  must  necessarily  be  more  or  less 
trouble  and  tribulation.  An  animal  nature  cannot  be 
free  from  proclivities  and  inclinations  that  cause  sin  and 
sorrow.  Also,  we  are  largely  creatures  of  brain  cell  inheri- 
tance, and  not  only  are  compelled  to  fight  our  own  desires  for 
wrong  doing,  but  must  struggle  for  self-betterment  against 
the  evil  influences  handed  down  by  our  forefathers.  Were 
it  not  for  the  good  inherited  from  this  same  source,  which 
gives  us  strength  to  overcome  harmful  and  oppressive  ten- 
dencies, our  lives  would  hardly  be  worth  the  struggle. 

Take  as  an  example  the  experiences  of  a  man  who 
started  out  in  life  as  a  young  lad  practically  free  from  in- 
clinations for  wrong  doing.  His  mental  training  at  that 
early  period  of  his  existence  had  not  developed  the  objec- 
tionable cellular  activities  that  later  proved  to  be  his  down- 
fall. His  thoughts  were  not  yet  perverted,  and  did  not 
prompt  acts  and  deeds  that  were  discreditable.  He  was  re- 
garded as  a  splendid  example  of  youth,  with  prospects 
for  a  bright  successful  future.  As  the  age  of  maturity 
approached  this  young  man  became  associated  with  com- 
panions who  induced  him  to  use  tobacco,  and  a  little  later 
he  learned  to  drink  mild  intoxicants,  and  to  use  vile  lan- 
guage. Naturally  shrewd  and  tactful,  the  young  man  estab- 
lished a  small  retail  store,  which  was  successful  and  devel- 
oped into  a  large  business  concern.  Meantime  he  had  mar- 
ried and  his  domestic  life  was  made  happy  by  the  compan- 
ionship of  a  loving  wife  and  several  children.  Under  nor- 
mal conditions  there  would  have  been  no  good  reason  for 


92       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

publishing  this  short  sketch  of  an  unhappy  career,  but  the 
bad  habits  formed  in  the  early  life  of  the  man  became  in- 
struments of  his  misfortune,  and  caused  him  to  neglect  his 
business  affairs,  his  family,  and  his  own  personal  welfare. 
In  due  time,  creditors  seized  and  disposed  of  his  once  pros- 
perous business,  his  wife  was  compelled  to  seek  employ- 
ment to  maintain  the  household,  and  the  children  found  it 
necessary  to  stop  going  to  school  in  order  to  help  support 
a  drunken,  dissolute  father. 

The  father,  once  a  prosperous  business  man  and  the 
head  of  a  happy  family,  had  lost  his  mental  control,  and 
had  become  the  slave  of  destructive,  relentless  habits.  His 
mind  was  unbalanced  to  such  an  extent  that  he  could  not 
resist  the  physical  demand  for  stimulants,  and  this  demand 
had  been  gratified  at  the  expense  of  his  manhood,  property, 
family  respect  and  affection.  He  had  sacrificed  everything 
in  life  worth  having,  to  satiate  a  desire  for  strong  drink  and 
its  kindred  deleterients.  The  distressing  realization  of  his 
degradation,  added  to  his  already  heavy  burden  of  woe,  was 
perhaps  his  greatest  punishment.  Looking  backward  into 
life  and  suffering  intense  regrets  for  his  downfall  was  his 
chief  torment.  The  fires  of  mental  anguish,  created  by 
thoughts  of  his  weakness  and  lack  of  ability  to  overcome 
the  habits  that  had  destroyed  him,  supplied  the  hell  we 
read  of  in  the  bible.  Yet,  in  all  probability  this  man  was  not 
entirely  responsible  for  his  lamentable  condition. 

Innumerable  young  men  undergo  the  same  experiences 
that  caused  the  undoing  of  the  man  above  mentioned,  and 
pass  through  the  crucible  of  fate  unblemished.  Through 
mental  training  they  learned  the  lesson  of  self-restraint,  and 
from  that  experience  became  strong  and  self-reliant.  The 
difference  between  the  two  examples  of  manhood  may  be 
found  in  the  inherited  brain-cell  organism  of  the  individ- 
uals. The  cellular  functions  handed  down  to  the  fallen 
man  by  his  progenitors  bore  the  seed  of  bestial  and  dis- 
solute habits.    The  brain  organs  received  from  the  same 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  93 

source  by  the  other  man  were  practically  free  from  the  taint 
which  causes  so  much  distress  to  humanity. 

Brain  and  nerve  cellular  inheritance  has  much  to  do 
with  moulding  the  future  of  mankind.  The  strength,  worth 
and  fitness  of  a  mentality  depend  largely  on  the  condition 
in  which  it  is  bestowed  at  the  time  of  procreation.  Drink- 
ing, dissolute  parents  must  not  expect  to  procreate  children 
with  strong,  active  minds,  although  there  may  be  exceptions. 
A  brain  organ  of  the  present  day  carries  with  it  the  ex- 
periences of  countless  pregenerations.  Those  experiences 
are  represented  by  the  brain  and  nerve  cells  that  actuate  our 
mentalities  after  they  have  been  developed.  But  they  are 
not  reproductions  of  the  thoughts,  acts  and  deeds  of  our 
ancestors.  They  are  counterparts  of  traits  of  character, 
ability  to  learn,  mental  activity,  physical  habits  and  taints, 
and  similar  inclinations  and  tendencies  that  controlled  the 
conduct  of  our  progenitors.  The  mentality  is  in  reality  the 
man,  without  considering  his  physical  functions,  which  are 
simply  instruments  of  convenience.  The  mentality  prompts 
every  thought,  impulse,  act  and  deed,  and  is  in  fact  our 
keeper,  master,  guide  and  mentor.  This  brain  and  nerve 
cell  mentality  is  bestowed  as  a  brain  organ,  along  with  other 
bodily  functions,  at  the  time  of  the  procreation  impregna- 
tion. It  is  the  master  function  of  the  child,  which  is  created 
and  given  life  by  its  parents,  and  therefore  carries  with  it 
the  characteristics  of  its  parents  and  their  ancestors. 

Parents  must  understand  and  realize  the  importance  of 
being  one  hundred  per  cent  good,  before  they  can  expect 
to  procreate  perfect  children.  That  would  be  nearly  impos- 
sible, but  it  is  within  the  ability  of  every  person  to  develop 
better  and  more  satisfactory  brain  and  nerve  cellular  ener- 
gies. A  mentaHty  may  be  made  stronger  and  more  useful 
by  cultivation,  in  the  same  manner  that  any  form  of  natural 
life  may  be  freed  from  the  causes  that  oppress  and  afflict 
it.  Thoughts  and  inclinations  for  wrong  doing  affect  the 
mind  disastrously,  in  the  same  way  that  a  blight  destroys 


94       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

the  good  quality  of  fruit.  The  only  method  of  upbuilding 
mankind,  mentally  and  physically,  is  to  free  the  mind  from 
baneful  thoughts  and  influences.  Again  impress  your  mind 
with  the  truth  that  thoughts  are  creations  of  mental  energy, 
and  that  they  prompt  our  acts  and  deeds.  To  prevent  doing 
wrong,  and  to  banish  bad  habits,  it  is  necessary  to  allow 
none  but  good  thoughts  to  occupy  the  mind.  Intense,  earn- 
est, heartfelt  prayer  for  right  doing  is  a  panacea  for  all 
forms  of  mental  evil. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  95 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  SIXTEEN 

THAT    MAN    WAS    ENDOWED    WITH     A    SUPERIOR    MENTALITY 

FOR   THE   PURPOSE   OF   ACHIEVING   IMMORTALITY,   AND 

TO   UPBUILD  THE  WELFARE  OF  THE  WORLD 

MAN,  since  the  beginning,  has  been  inspired  with  the 
Hef  that  he  is  to  be  blessed  with  a  future  existence, 
an  everlasting  life,  where  his  earthly  hopes  for  happi- 
ness and  contentment  will  meet  with  full  fruition.  That  man's 
dream  of  heaven,  as  a  paradise  of  perfect  joy,  was  born  of 
earthly  hopes,  is  shown  by  consulting  his  various  religious 
beliefs.  Each  type  of  man,  and  each  peculiar  belief,  have 
their  own  idea  of  what  the  heavenly  reward  will  be.  But  all 
of  these  hopes  are  based  on  the  one  principle  that  man  must 
earn  the  immortal  reward  by  some  great  personal  act,  or 
through  the  excellence  of  his  life.  It  is  not  necessary  to 
describe  the  particular  difference  in  the  nature  of  these  re- 
wards.   They  are  familiar  to  most  readers. 

There  was  only  one  way  for  man  to  have  acquired  this 
hope  of  immortality,  and  that  was  through  the  endowment 
of  his  superior  brain  cell  organism.  Man  must  have  re- 
ceived this  inspiration  from  that  source,  or  it  would  not 
have  caused  him  to  embody  it  in  his  religious  belief.  No 
other  of  God's  animal  creations  are  intelligent  enough  to 
exert  mental  ability,  except  that  derived  by  the  five  senses, 
and  that  is  only  sufficient  to  enable  them  to  live,  and  to  seek 
temporary  protection  from  their  own  predatory  kind,  and 
from  the  vicissitudes  of  nature.  Man  was  invested  with 
ability  to  think,  seek  divine  guidance,  receive  inspiration, 
invent  and  perfect  useful  articles  and  to  prepare  himself 
for  immortality.  This  superior  mental  acquisition  is  desig- 
nated as  the  sixth  or  super-sense.  Man  did  not  possess  the 
ability  to  make  full  use  of  this  superior  sense  in  the  early 
stages  of  his  existence.   Like  many  other  stages  in  the  de- 


96       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

velopment  of  man's  rtientality,  the  sixth  sense  has  been 
gradually  developed  to  its  present  status  step  by  step,  and 
eventually  it  will  practically  free  man  from  his  thraldom 
of  sinful  tendencies. 

Immortality,  then,  must  be  the  ultimate  reward  of  man. 
It  may  not  come  until  he  shall  be  able  to  throw  off  the  yoke 
of  wrong  doing  entirely,  or  it  may  be  possible  that  diligent 
and  sincere  effort  to  make  himself  worthy  may  entitle 
man  to  that  blessing.  There  is  one  thing  sure,  man  must 
be  his  own  redeemer.  No  one  but  each  distinct  individual 
is  capable  of  dealing  with  his  mentality.  The  task  of 
reformation  cannot  be  delegated  to  some  one  else.  Individ- 
ual endeavor,  earnest  and  sincere,  is  the  only  way  a  brain 
cell  organism  may  be  regenerated.  The  prayers  of  others 
will  not  avail.  Each  of  us  must  pray  for  himself.  That  will 
be  our  only  means  of  salvation.  No  other  method  of  mental 
effort  will  actuate  our  brain  cells  and  strengthen  them  for 
right  doing.  We  must  all  earn  the  immortal  reward  by 
becoming  worthy  of  that  boon.  God  does  not  free  us  from 
our  sinful  natures.  That  is  our  own  solemn  duty.  That  is 
why  a  superior  mentality  was  bestowed  on  man.  We  should 
learn  how  to  make  good  use  of  it. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  97 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  SEVENTEEN 

THAT     THE     ADAGE,     "mAN     PROPOSES     AND     GOD     DISPOSES," 

SHOULD  BE  REVERSED  TO  READ,   "gOD  PROPOSES   AND 

MAN   disposes" 

THIS  world  was  created  and  peopled  in  accordance  with 
natural  laws.  Man  was  made  the  superior  animal,  and 
soon  came  to  his  own  by  assuming  control  of  every- 
thing in  the  world,  except  the  elements.  There  is  no  evidence 
that  the  Creator  ever  interfered,  in  any  way,  with  man's 
domination.  Nature  and  the  remainder  of  the  animal  king- 
dom could  not  do  so,  and  today  we  find  man  more  firmly 
seated  on  the  throne  of  earthly  power  than  he  was  at  the  be- 
ginning. God  may  have  proposed  something  differently;  if 
so,  His  wishes  have  not  made  themselves  manifest.  Man 
is  lord  and  master  over  everything  but  his  own  follies,  and 
they  are  constantly  keeping  him  in  trouble. 

Whatever  man  proposes  is  left  to  his  own  efforts,  to  be 
made  prosperous  and  useful.  If  man  sows  a  field  of  grain, 
and  neglects  to  take  care  of  it,  God  does  not  perform  that 
duty.  If  man  makes  an  investment,  and  does  not  use  good 
judgment,  God  fails  to  restore  the  losses.  If  man  makes  a 
misstep  and  tumbles  off  a  building,  God  lets  him  fall,  and 
does  not  even  pick  him  up.  If  man  goes  into  battle  and 
gets  in  the  way  of  a  bullet,  God  will  not  turn  it  aside,  and 
frequently  lets  the  missile  kill  the  victim.  If  man  goes  out 
in  a  boat  and  upsets  it,  God  lets  him  swim  to  the  shore,  or 
drown.  If  man  contracts  a  contagious  disease  and  spreads 
it  about  a  community,  God  does  nothing  to  prevent  people 
from  catching  it,  and  they  are  compelled  to  put  up  signs 
of  warning.  If  a  poor  woman  deposits  all  her  money  in  a 
bank  and  the  bank  fails,  God  lets  her  suffer  the  loss  without 
notice.  If  a  train  load  of  passengers  runs  off  the  track,  or 
a  steamboat  loaded  with  people  blows  up,  or  if  a  church 
filled  with  worshippers  is   struck  by  lightning,   or  if  an 


98       FOR    THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

assassin  throws  a  lighted  bomb  in  a  crowd  of  people,  God 
never  pays  attention  to  the  number  of  people  killed. 

Once  in  a  while,  a  person  will  strike  luck  and  win  a 
fortune,  or  some  one  will  be  sick  and  get  well,  or  another 
person  will  dig  a  well  and  find  oil,  or  a  dealer  in  stocks 
will  make  a  winning,  or  a  general  will  conquer  an  enemy, 
or  the  farmers  will  have  good  crops,  or  a  church  will  pay 
off  its  debt,  or  a  country  will  prosper,  or  other  similar  good 
fortune  befall  people,  and  then  everybody  will  shout,  "That 
is  God's  providence,  God  has  helped  us."  In  most  instances 
where  people  have  prospered,  or  good  luck  has  shown  up, 
it  will  be  found  that  the  benefits  resulted  from  the  use  of 
common  sense.  It  was  evidence  of  a  sane  mentality.  God 
had  no  more  to  do  with  causing  the  good  fortune  than  he 
had  with  bringing  about   the  misfortune. 

We  should  rely  entirely  on  our  own  efforts  to  attain 
success,  in  any  walk  of  Ufe.  God  does  not  watch  over  us, 
or  guide  us  in  our  undertakings.  He  does  not  put  thoughts 
in  our  minds,  or  lead  us  out  of  dangers.  He  does  not  show 
us  gold  mines  or  cause  us  to  win  fortunes  from  specula- 
tions. He  does  not  invest  healers  with  power  to  cure  dis- 
ease, through  an  alleged  divine  mind.  God  never  put 
prophecies  into  any  person's  mouth,  or  allowed  the  spirits 
of  deceased  mortals  to  hover  in  our  midst  and  give  rap- 
pings  and  materializing  seances.  All  schemes  and  efforts 
to  bring  God  into  prominence  as  a  servant  or  helper  of 
man,  or  as  a  guide  or  a  protector,  are  belittling  His  majesty 
as  a  Creator,  the  controlling  Influence  of  the  universe. 

Man  must  win  his  own  battles  in  Hfe.  God  is  not  man's 
assistant  or  protector.  Man  was  created  with  a  mentality 
which,  if  properly  developed  and  used,  would  bring  him  all 
of  the  happiness,  prosperity  and  contentment  that  God 
could  bestow,  were  He  inclined  to  do  so.  Man  is  selfish. 
He  practically  owns  the  earth,  has  control  of  it,  and  still  is 
not  satisfied.  Man's  religious  belief  has  much  to  do  with 
his  selfishness.   He  expects  God  to  watch  over  his  endeav- 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  99 

ors  and  help  him  rob  his  fellow  kind.  Man's  church  train- 
ing leads  him  to  think  that  God  guides  us  in  all  things,  and 
man  prays  for  that  assistance.  If  disappointed,  man  is  told 
by  his  religious  teachers  that  God  has  some  good  reason 
for  withholding  His  favor.  When  man  learns  to  pray  for 
his  own  mental  development,  he  will  not  need  God's  help, 
even  were  it  available.  The  mentality  is  man's  guide  to 
success  and  well  doing.  Develop  it  by  sincere,  earnest 
prayer,  and  luck  and  belief  in  the  supernatural  will  cease 
to  appear  as  factors  in  our  lives. 


100  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  EIGHTEEN 

THAT  ABILITY  TO  DO  THINGS,  TO  ACCOMPLISH   SATISFACTORY 

RESULTS,  TO  BRING  ABOUT  SUCCESSFUL  ISSUES,  TO  ACQUIRE 

KNOWLEDGE,    TO    LEARN    TO    MEMORIZE   AND   TO   BECOME 

PROFICIENT     IN     PHYSICAL     FEATS     ARE     RESULTS     OF 

MENTAL   TRAINING 

WHEN  a  problem  of  any  kind  is  presented  to  a  man 
and  he  throws  up  his  hands  and  exclaims,  "That  is 
too  deep  for  me,"  you  may  take  it  for  granted  that 
the  man  is  either  prejudiced  or  is  possessed  with  a  non-active, 
dense  mentality.  A  lazy  mentality  might  express  the  con- 
dition better.  Prejudice  has  more  to  do  with  our  not  trying 
to  understand  mental  propositions  than  any  other  reason. 
One  churchman  will  say  that  christian  science  is  "no  good," 
without  knowing  anything  about  its  principles ;  another  will 
excuse  himself  from  reading  a  new  religious  theory,  with 
the  statement  that  "the  old  way  is  good  enough  for  me," 
and  a  third  person  will  say,  "You  cannot  expect  me  to  un- 
derstand this  new  belief,  or  to  be  convinced  of  its  worthi- 
ness; it  is  too  deep  for  me,"  after  he  has  read  it  over 
several  times.  Here  are  three  evidences  of  prejudice.  The 
last  one  is  least  excusable.  Even  prejudice  may  be  over- 
come by  mental  effort.  It  is  a  question  of  mental  training. 
Learning  to  play  a  musical  instrument  becomes  a  habit 
after  much  practice.  The  fingers,  mind  and  sense  of  hear- 
ing are  trained  to  be  agile  and  expert  by  the  time  the  habit 
is  acquired.  We  learn  a  lesson  by  study  and  the  use  of  an 
ability  to  memorize.  Study  develops  the  ability  to  memorize. 
The  same  mental  application  enables  us  to  solve  problems, 
acquire  knowledge,  or  to  understand  whether  or  not  we  are 
worshipping  a  real  God  or  a  myth.  Mental  application, 
mental  training,  points  out  the  false  from  the  true.  It  estab- 
lishes fact  and  overthrows  fiction.  It  shows  what  is  right 
and  what  is  wrong,  but  the  information  may  not  be  had 


»  »  1  »  ^  J  . 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GC^jP  ,'>\  •.,  i  i*  '.,Xfl',  i 

without  mental  activity.  The  person  who  will  study  a 
proposition  without  prejudice  may  always  be  convinced, 
either  one  way  or  the  other.  But  the  one  who  reads  it 
without  allowing  the  argument  to  create  an  impression,  will 
know  no  more  about  its  worth  than  would  a  fly  resting  on 
the  ceiling.  Everything  we  know,  or  do,  must  necessarily 
become  a  creation  of  mental  activity.  Should  the  mental 
organism  be  sluggish,  and  refuse  to  respond  to  mental  effort, 
there  is  little  hope  of  our  ever  astonishing  the  world  with 
acts  of  mental  and  physical  genius. 

Look  farther  into  the  acquirements  of  mental  training 
and  mental  effort.  See  the  gymnast  in  his  nimble,  daring 
physical  feats,  which  show  the  result  of  mental  training. 
Every  movement  and  act,  and  their  remarkable  precision, 
required  years  of  study  and  practice,  every  moment  of 
which  the  gymnast  employed  his  mind  in  achieving  this 
proficiency.  Without  this  mental  training  the  physical 
ability  could  not  have  been  developed.  Oratorical  ability, 
business  ability,  and  every  other  ability  that  is  successful 
and  worth  having,  are  created  by  mental  training  and  ren- 
dered useful  by  mental  effort.  Such  success  cannot  be 
accomplished  by  sluggish  minds,  or  those  controlled  by 
prejudice.  Mental  training  creates  habit,  whether  it  be  right 
or  wrong — the  habit  of  a  business  nature,  or  the  habit  of 
speaking  in  public,  playing  a  musical  instrument,  throwing 
somersaults,  or  of  becoming  proficient  in  any  other  manner. 
We  must  first  acquire  the  habit  of  doing  things  before  we 
can  be  successful.  That  assertion  applies  to  our  efforts  to 
understand  right  from  wrong,  and  how  to  do  right. 

Our  mentalities  guide,  control  and  record  our  every 
thought,  impulse,  act  and  deed.  We  do  everything  in  life 
in  accordance  with  our  brain  cellular  development.  That 
development  is  created  by  mental  activity,  caused  by  mental 
effort.  The  effort  results  from  the  use  of  the  six  senses. 
The  five  senses,  touch,  taste,  sight,  smell  and  hearing, 
prompt  mental  activities  to  acquire  information  and  knowl- 


:t9i,:  'r,  ^.f.OIi'JHE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

edge  from  outside  sources,  and  the  sixth  or  super-sense, 
known  as  our  innate  nature,  controls  activities  awakened 
by  memory,  study,  ability  to  invent  and  devise,  to  prepare 
ourselves  for  immortality,  to  distinguish  between  right  and 
wrong,  and  to  do  everything  else  that  a  mentality  is  capable 
of  doing,  including  the  control  of  our  physical  functions. 
The  record  of  our  mentalities  is  shown  by  the  brain  cellular 
development.  If  we  dance,  the  mental  effort  prompts  the 
use  of  activities  that  control  both  mental  and  physical  func- 
tions. That  explanation  applies  to  everything  we  do  where 
both  mental  and  physical  functions  are  called  into  activity. 
If  we  study,  both  the  sight  and  memorizing  functions  are 
employed.  If  we  simply  ponder,  or  use  the  mind  to  think 
out  problems,  the  sixth  sense  alone  controls  our  mental 
activities.  Every  physical  and  mental  act  is  the  result  of 
brain  cellular  activities  created  by  mental  effort,  or  impulse. 
This  brain  cellular  development  is  located  in  the  brain 
organ,  and  it  is  known  as  our  mentality.  It  consists  of 
myriads  of  nerve  or  brain  cells,  which  are  connected  with 
nerve  fibers  that  ramify  in  every  function  and  part  of  our 
bodies.  The  brain  cells  that  actuate  and  cause  mental  and 
physical  movements  are  congregated  in  centers  in  the 
various  parts  of  the  brain  organism.  These  centers  control 
the  different  mental  and  physical  functions,  which  enable 
us  to  be  useful  to  ourselves  and  to  the  world.  Life  inspires 
us  and  is  the  means  of  our  existence.  To  life  we  also  are 
indebted  for  the  ability  to  procreate  and  perpetuate  man- 
kind. ^  ^-^-^^^fm. 
The  process  of  mental  training,  mental  development  and 
the  necessity  of  preserving  our  mentalities,  that  they  may 
be  strong  and  vigorous,  should  be  clear  to  careful  and  un- 
prejudiced readers.  Mental  training  to  develop  an  ability 
for  wrong  doing,  is  the  same  as  when  developing  an  ability 
to  do  right,  to  acquire  an  education,  or  to  learn  to  play  a 
musical  instrument,  or  to  do  anything  else  to  be  done.  It 
is  exclusively  a  physical  process  of  brain  cellular  develop- 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  103 

ment,  and  anything  we  do  right  or  wrong  becomes  a  habit 
if  continued  long  enough  to  be  acquired.  Should  it  be  a 
habit  that  injures  health,  morals,  or  reputation,  and  an 
effort  is  made  to  discontinue  it,  that  effort  must  become 
a  habit  that  will  overthrow  and  subjugate  the  one  that  is 
undesirable.  In  that  way  right  doing  is  made  to  overcome 
wrong  doing.  Should  we  desire  to  place  ourselves  on  record 
as  candidates  for  immortality,  we  should  carry  constantly 
in  our  thoughts  the  words,  "I  want  to  do  right,  I  want  to 
see  the  right,  I  want  to  know  the  right."  Such  a  desire, 
developed  into  a  habit  that  will  control  our  mentalities, 
would  finally  result  in  our  becoming  worthy  of  immortality. 


104  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  NINETEEN 

THAT    THE    MOST    LAUDABLE   AMBITION     TO   WHICH    MAN    OR 

WOMAN    COULD    ASPIRE,     IS     TO    BECOME    A    PARENT    OF 

HEALTHY,   INTELLECTUAL,   MORAL  CHILDREN,  WITH 

VIGOROUS,    ACTIVE    MENTALITIES 

IT  IS  natural  for  us  to  love  children  and  to  like  to  see 
them  full  of  life  and  good  nature.  We  admire  them 
because  they  are  innocent  of  the  mental  afflictions  that 
may  later  seize  them  in  their  toils.  We  cherish  innocence  and 
protect  it  with  hearfelt  interest,  when  necessary  to  do  so. 
We  look  upon  a  child  as  we  do  a  beautiful  flower  just  blos- 
soming into  beauty  and  fragrance.  The  innocent  child  repre- 
sents the  most  beautiful  and  valuable  thing  in  nature's  do- 
main. The  flower  is  the  adornment  that  reminds  us  of  the 
importance  of  retaining  the  childhood  innocence  throughout 
adult  life.  The  early  life  of  a  child  is  innocent  and  free  from 
guile,  because  the  process  of  mental  development  has  not 
been  smirched  with  the  influences  and  experiences  that  beset 
the  growing  mentality  in  later  years.  The  environments 
of  the  family  circle,  where  children  are  usually  reared,  are 
seldom  invaded  by  the  gross  activities  of  the  ordinary  adult 
existence.  Opportunity  has  not  yet  come  to  sully  the  inno- 
cence of  childhood. 

There  are  several  reasons  why  adult  life  mars  the  in- 
nocence of  childhood,  and  sometimes  displaces  it  entirely 
from  the  person's  mind.  One  of  these  reasons  is  the  devel- 
opment of  objectionable  inherited  traits  of  character.  Usu- 
ally these  carnal  traits  do  not  manifest  themselves  until 
maturity.  It  is  then  that  the  development  of  inherited 
cellular  influences  begin  to  control  the  mental  activities. 
Other  inherited  traits,  like  those  of  a  turbulent,  violent 
temper,  tendencies  to  pilfer,  inclinations  to  be  cunning, 
greedy,  vicious,  and  similar  taints,  may  become  apparent. 
Also  there  are  commendable  inherited  traits  of  character 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  105 

developed.  The  next  reason  for  the  disappearance  of  child- 
hood's innocence  will  be  found  in  the  acquired  influences 
that  cause  wrong  doing.  Bad  habits  may  be  developed,  be- 
cause of  the  reprehensible  example  set  by  the  parents,  evil- 
minded  playmates,  and  others  with  whom  the  youngsters 
may  come  in  contact.  Growing  children  are  prone  to  follow 
the  examples  of  those  with  whom  they  are  associated.  That 
is  one  way  they  acquire  mental  training. 

The  last  and  most  serious  reason  why  childhood  inno- 
cence is  banished  when  the  adult  age  has  been  reached,  is 
the  absence  of  the  moral  influences  created  by  early  mental 
training.  Learning  to  do  right  when  the  mentality  is  ac- 
quiring its  first  education  builds  a  foundation  for  the 
accession  of  future  moral  training  that  is  a  strong  defense 
against  desires  for  wrong  doing.  Mental  activities  acquired 
early  in  life  are  always  most  desirable.  They  retain  their 
vigor  longer  and  are  easier  to  control.  That  statement  will 
be  substantiated  by  people  well  along  in  years,  whose  mem- 
ories recall  early  experiences,  when  those  of  later  years 
have  been  forgotten.  The  mental  training  for  the  first 
thirty-five  years  of  life  fixes  the  character  of  a  person,  and 
determines  the  value  of  his  mental  activities.  He  may  ac- 
complish greater  undertakings  after  that  period,  but  his 
mental  abilities  will  not  have  been  made  stronger  and  more 
effective  by  these  experiences.  After  the  first  thirty-five 
years,  habits  and  vices,  if  acquired,  will  have  become  strong 
influences,  and  will  begin  to  work  injury  to  the  mentaHty. 

Parents  cannot  overestimate  the  importance  of  giving 
their  children  a  moral  mental  training,  an  education  in 
moral  culture.  Such  a  training  may  prevent  their  falling 
into  the  pitfall  of  wickedness  in  later  years.  It  may  prove 
a  safeguard  that  will  protect  them  from  evil  associations, 
and  the  acquirement  of  bad  habits  and  vicious  tendencies. 
It  may  keep  them  from  becoming  disreputable  and  un- 
worthy, and  from  sinking  into  the  depths  of  poverty  and 
despair.   Teach  the  children  to  pray  while  their  mentalities 


106      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

are  being  developed  and  their  characters  are  forming.  Give 
them  to  understand  what  prayer  means  to  them,  and  the 
protection  it  will  afford  in  times  of  need.  Show  them  clearly 
and  plainly  that  prayer  for  right  doing,  right  thinking,  and 
right  seeing  into  the  problems  of  life,  will  strengthen  their 
minds  and  cause  them  to  be  healthy,  vigorous  and  ready 
to  meet  kny  and  all  emergencies.  Tell  them  to  pray  at 
every  possible  opportunity,  and  not  to  pray  in  public  or 
where  their  prayers  will  attract  attention.  They  are  to 
pray  for  their  own  welfare  and  for  nothing  else.  Induce 
them  to  be  sincere  and  earnest  in  their  prayers,  that  their 
mentalities  may  be  invigorated  and  influenced  for  right  do- 
ing. Pray  with  them  until  they  have  acquired  the  prayer 
habit,  and  see  that  they  grow  into  adult  life  still  retaining 
their  childhood  innocence. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  107 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER   TWENTY 

THAT    THE    MUCH    VAUNTED    STATEMENT    THAT     MAN     WAS 

CREATED   AFTER   THE   IMAGE   OF   GOD    MUST   BE   A    MISTAKE. 

MAN    IS   AN    ANIMAL,    AND   IS    POSSESSED   WITH    ANIMAL 

PROCLIVITIES.      WHAT    MAN    MOST    NEEDS    IS    MENTAL 

SELF-UPBUILDING.      HE    MAY    THEN    BE    WORTHY   OF 

A    COMPARISON    WITH    GOD 

THE  prehistoric  man,  from  whom  we  are  descendants, 
was  an  animal  in  act  and  being.  He  possessed  a  su- 
perior mentality,  which  was  subsequently  developed 
into  an  ability  to  think  and  plan  for  his  future  welfare,  and 
which  also  led  this  prehistoric  ancestor  to  club  down  his 
opponents  and  gain  mastery  over  them.  This  original  man 
was  a  true  child  of  nature,  and  from  him  we  have  inherited 
animal  traits  which  cannot  be  abandoned,  although  our  men- 
talities may  be  trained  to  a  marked  degree  of  intellectuality. 
Our  mortal  existence  is  maintained  by  respiration  and  by 
taking  food,  and  like  that  of  other  animals  our  demise  results 
from  either  disease,  injury,  or  old  age.  We  are  subject  to 
the  changes  incident  to  all  animal  life,  with  this  exception, 
we  are  permitted  to  indulge  in  excesses  and  follies  that 
do  not  afflict  other  animals.  There  is  nothing  in  our  pro- 
creation, birth,  life,  or  death  that  is  different  from  that  of 
other  vertebrates,  and  there  is  no  indication  that  we  are 
protected  by  either  miraculous  or  supernatural  power.  We 
are  equipped  with  a  superior  mentality,  apparently  bestowed 
to  enable  us  to  control  the  world.  That  duty  is  now  being 
discharged  very  much  to  our  discredit. 

Instead  of  peacefully  looking  after  our  own  affairs,  and 
performing  good  deeds  that  would  bring  happiness  and 
contentment  to  our  posterity,  we  have  from  the  beginning 
waged  fraticidal  wars,  and  have  been  guilty  of  bloodshed 
and  crimes  too  horrible  to  mention.    Many  of  these  wars. 


108      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

in  which  multitudes  were  tortured  and  slain,  were  incited 
by  differences  in  religious  opinions  and  similar  dissensions. 
At  this  late  day,  great  nations  have  been  fighting  and 
slaughtering  each  other,  calling  on  God  to  give  them  vic- 
tory. If  God  rules  the  world  with  a  firm  control  of  justice 
and  mercy.  He  should  curb  the  warlike  propensities  of  His 
mortal  children,  and  stop  their  career  of  bloodshed,  rapine 
and  ruin. 

Many  readers  will  not  agree  with  the  assertion  that  God 
does  not  personally  rule  the  world,  and  does  not  interfere 
with  the  processes  of  nature.  But  that  is  true.  It  is  a  truth 
that  should  be  written  in  every  person's  mind.  It  is  a  fact 
that  cannot  successfully  be  refuted.  It  is  both  truth  and 
fact  that  must  inevitably  be  revealed  to  the  thoughtful 
investigator. 

God  is  a  Creator.  He  does  not  intervene  when  His 
creations  go  astray.  Man  rules  the  world,  so  far  as  the 
affairs  of  nature  are  concerned.  When  man  does  wrong, 
he  must  suffer  the  consequences  of  his  wrong  doing.  When 
man  wages  war,  there  is  no  other  hand  than  his  own  to 
stop  its  ravages.  When  nature's  elements  sweep  over  the 
land  to  destroy  man  and  his  property,  God  does  not  prevent 
the  havoc.  When  a  plague,  or  an  earthquake,  or  other 
similar  calamities  beset  the  welfare  of  man,  there  is  no 
supernatural  intervention  to  halt  the  disasters.  Man  must 
suffer  unhelped,  unrelieved.  Supplications  for  assistance, 
relief,  aid,  defense  or  protection  may  be  offered  by  thous- 
ands or  millions  in  events  of  national  distress,  but  they 
always  pass  unnoticed,  unheard.  Man  must  provide  his 
own  relief  and  protection  from  his  own  follies  and  weak- 
nesses, and  from  the  assaults  of  nature.  That  is  nature's 
law,  God's  law.  It  has  been  in  force  since  the  beginning  of 
the  world.  It  will  continue  to  guide  the  workings  of  nature 
as  long  as  time  and  God   exist. 

Man  through  his  own  mentality  governs  the  affairs  of  the 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  109 

world,  outside  of  its  connection  with  the  universe.  It  will 
be  seen,  then,  that  when  man  is  bestial  and  sinful,  the  af- 
fairs of  the  world  will  be  controlled  by  his  sinful  nature. 
That  is  unavoidable.  God  cannot  inspire  a  wicked  mentality 
with  pure  and  commendable  thoughts  and  deeds.  If  man 
is  desirous  of  living  uprightly,  and  of  seeing  humanity 
thrive,  prosper,  be  happy  and  contented,  he  must  free  his 
mentality  from  the  cellular  control  that  prompts  wrong  do- 
ing.   That  is  the  solution  of  earthly  troubles. 


110  FOR    THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER   TWENTY-ONE 

THAT    MENTAL    DISTRESS    AND    CASES    OF    "'nERVES"    RESULT 

FROM    LOSS   OF    MENTAL    CONTROL.     RIGHT    THINKING   AND 

RIGHT  DOING   WILL    BANISH    SUCH    EVILS.     FIGHT    THEM 

FEARLESSLY  THROUGH  THE  MEDIUM  OF  PRAYER.  THAT 

IS   THE   PANACEA   FOR   MENTAL   ILLS 

IF  WE  begin  to  fight  an  evil  nature  with  fear  in  our 
hearts,  we  are  more  likely  to  be  defeated  than  if  we 
are  confident  of  winning.  An  effort  to  upbuild 
strength  for  right  doing-  should  not  be  impeded  or  hindered 
by  thought  or  act  that  does  not  aid  the  upbuilding  process. 
If  we  pray  for  strength  to  do  right,  and  at  the  same  time 
plead  for  protection  from  wrong  doing,  we  are  recalling,  in 
our  thoughts,  reprehensible  acts  that  should  be  forgotten. 
Our  prayers,  to  be  efficacious,  should  be  free  from  such 
thoughts,  and  devoted  exclusively  to  a  mental  effort  for  right 
doing.  Thinking  wrong  will  never  rid  the  mentality  from  a 
tendency  for  wrong  doing.  Purge  the  thoughts,  at  all  times, 
from  inclinations  to  recall  disagreeable  incidents,  or  to  dwell 
on  imaginative  wrong  doing,  even  in  supplications  for  pro- 
tection against  evil. 

Much  of  our  trouble  might  be  avoided  if  we  would  apply 
the  principle  of  right  thinking  to  our  thoughts  when  the 
mentality  is  disturbed.  Cases  of  "nerves"  when  distressed 
by  fancied  or  real  troubles  may  be  averted  without  the  use 
of  opiates,  or  drugs  of  any  kind.  Insomnia  is  another  form 
of  distress  that  may  be  overcome  by  mental  training.  Hypo- 
chondria and  even  more  deeply  seated  mental  perturbances 
may  be  overthrown  by  persistent  mental  effort.  The  over- 
coming of  any  mental  distress,  where  the  brain  cells  are  in- 
tact and  have  not  lost  their  ability  to  be  actuated,  is  the 
result  of  mental  training.  As  has  been  previously  stated, 
mental  disturbances  and  perturbations  ensue  from  loss  of 
control,  where  there  is  lack  of  effective  mental  effort  to 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  Ul 

subdue  the  cellular  forces  that  create  the  agitation.  The 
proper  remedy  for  such  a  mental  condition  is  the  upbuild- 
ing of  a  mental  control  that  will  alleviate  the  trouble.  That 
remedy  must  be  had  by  mental  training. 

Take  a  case  of  insomnia  as  an  example.  The  distressed 
person  will  wallow  around  in  bed  seeing  all  kinds  of  mental 
spooks,  while  trying  to  court  sleep.  Hours  will  pass  in 
vain  efforts  to  quiet  the  restless  mind,  and  in  the  morning 
he  will  feel  pretty  well  exhausted.  To  overcome  the  pertur- 
bation, and  regain  mental  control  of  the  overtaxed  brain 
cells,  the  sixth,  or  super-sense,  should  be  made  to  supply 
energy  for  that  purpose.  That  means  a  resort  to  persistent, 
consistent  prayer.  It  would  be  better  to  pass  an  entire 
night  in  fervent  prayer  than  to  tumble  about  in  bed  in 
throes  of  wakeful  agony.  Prayer  for  strength  to  do  right, 
often  repeated,  will  bring  about  the  desired  relief.  It  may 
not  be  done  the  first,  or  the  second  night,  but  time  and  per- 
sistence will  conquer  insomnia,  or  any  other  mental  dis- 
tress, if  the  brain  cells  are  in  condition  to  respond  to  the 
prayerful  appeals. 

Readers  may  think  it  strange  that  prayer,  rightly  im- 
plored, may  heal  disease  as  well  as  overcome  wrong  do- 
ing. Any  form  of  physical  or  mental  weakness  that  results 
from  an  undesirable  development,  or  a  lack  of  sane  control 
of  the  mentality,  may  be  righted  by  mental  training.  The 
process  is  purely  physical.  Supernatural  influence  has  noth- 
ing to  do  with  it.  It  is  a  question  either  of  changing  a 
mental  control  by  means  of  cellular  development,  or  of 
strengthening  or  restoring  a  mental  control  that  has  been 
overworked.  Both  processes  accomplish  the  same  result,  an 
upbuilding  of  mental  control  for  right  doing.  Prayer,  if 
free  from  extraneous  influences,  will  arouse  mental  energy 
to  change  the  mental  control,  and  create  a  dominating  de- 
sire for  right  doing.  That  means  a  subjugation  of  tenden- 
cies for  wrong  doing  in  reforms  of  bad  habits  and  wicked- 
ness, and  a  rest  for  the  brain  cell  activities  that  cause  mental 


112      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

perturbation  and  distress.  There  could  be  no  mystery  in 
this  method  of  healing  physical  and  sinful  ills.  They  be- 
long to  the  element  of  the  mentality  which  we  may  desig- 
nate as  the  instigator  of  wrong  doing.  There  are  only  two 
cellular  elements  in  the  mentality.  One  inspires  right  doing, 
which  includes  every  thought,  act  and  deed  that  upbuilds 
personal  and  public  welfare.  The  other  instigates  wrong 
doing,  which  constitutes  everything  in  human  life  that  im- 
pairs health  and  destroys  individual  and  public  progress, 
prosperity,  and  comfort. 

Segregating  the  regeneration  of  sin  and  wickedness  from 
religious  worship  may  not  seem  productive  of  good,  because 
all  methods  of  reformation  have  heretofore  been  controlled 
by  religious  associations.  But  in  reality  regeneration  is  a 
mental  and  not  a  religious  reformation.  Prayer  is  the  chief 
factor  in  upbuilding  a  mentality  for  right  doing;  but  de- 
vout supplications  are  not  for  supernatural  aid,  but  for 
the  purpose  of  creating  or  stimulating  a  greater  and  more 
effective  desire  for  right  doing.  We  will  not  overcome  our 
sinful  natures  without  first  feeling  a  desire  to  do  so,  and 
the  longer  we  neglect  the  endeavor  to  abandon  wicked  ways, 
the  less  chance  there  will  be  for  our  reformation.  Church 
methods  try  to  reform  sinners  by  persuasion.  The  means 
advocated  in  this  volume  appeal  to  the  common  sense  of 
the  reader.  It  is  a  question  of  brain  cellular  control.  A 
control  created  for  right  doing  assures  freedom  from  sinful 
and  wicked  desires,  from  the  influence  of  bad  habits,  mental 
weakness,  and  many  forms  of  illness.  Church  reforms  must 
be  brought  about  by  a  change  of  mental  control  accom- 
plished in  the  same  manner.  The  brain  cells  of  a  proposed 
convert  cannot  be  actuated  by  pulpit  oratory,  or  by  the 
amens  of  a  congregation.  The  convert  must  do  his  own 
praying.  The  reformation  is  an  individual  act.  The  cellular 
organism  of  a  mentality  cannot  be  made  to  respond  to  ex- 
traneous influences.  Therefore  mental  regeneration  is  not 
a  creature  of  religious  worship. 


FINDING   THE  REAL  GOD  118 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   TWENTY-TWO 

THAT  OUR  MENTALITIES  ARE  NOT  LIKE  SPONGES,  INTO  WHICH 
INFORMATION     AND     KNOWLEDGE     MAY    BE    SOAKED,     AND 
THEN   SQUEEZED   OUT  WHEN    NEEDED;    NOR  ARE  THEY  A 
WHITE    AND    GRAY    MATTER    ACTUATED    SUPERNATUR- 
ALLY,  ONE  FOR  THE  INTELLECT,  AND  THE  OTHER  FOR 
PHYSICAL    movements;    nor    are    WE    POSSESSED 
.  BY   A   SPIRITUAL   INFLUENCE   THAT   REAPPEARS 
AFTER  WE   HAVE   PASSED   AWAY,   AS   GHOSTS, 
AURAS,  OR  SHADOWS  OF  OUR  EARTHLY  EX- 
ISTENCE   AS    INDIVIDUALS.      SUCH    PHE- 
NOMENA   ARE    CREATIONS    OF   VIVID 
IMAGINATIONS 

WL  ACQUIRE  information  and  knowledge  from  out- 
side sources  by  using  our  eyes,  ears,  nose,  mouth  and 
sense  of  touch  or  feeling.  These  five  senses  enable 
us  to  read  and  observe,  to  listen  and  hear,  to  small  and  dis- 
criminate, to  taste  and  select,  to  touch  and  feel  and  distin- 
guish what  is  desirable.  Every  bit  of  information  and  knowl- 
edge acquired  from  sources  independent  of  our  own  individ- 
ualities must  from  necessity  come  through  the  medium  of 
these  senses.  There  is  no  other  means  of  storing  the  in- 
formation and  knowledge  thus  acquired  in  the  memory 
cells  of  our  mentalities.  The  storing  is  done  by  developing 
and  actuating  brain  cells  for  that  purpose.  This  statement 
will  prompt  the  thought:  How  could  the  mentality  supply 
brain  cells  for  all  the  thoughts,  acts,  deeds  and  impulses 
created  by  a  lifetime  of  mental  activity?  Consider  how  so 
many  words  in  the  human  vocabulary  may  be  constructed 
from  an  alphabet  of  only  twenty-six  letters,  or  how  so 
many,  many  melodies,  and  such  a  wonderful  variety  of 
harmonies,  have  been  created  by  the  use  of  only  seven  notes 
and  their  sharps  and  flats.    Then,  recall  the  fact  that  all 


114      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

of  these  melodies  and  harmonies  are  creatures  of  brain  cell 
creation,  that  they  owe  their  origin  to  the  activities  of  a 
human  brain  organism. 

The  five  senses  have  nothing  to  do  with  musical  com- 
position or  other  inventions,  although  a  knowledge  of  music 
must  be  acquired  by  their  use,  in  the  same  manner  all  in- 
formation and  knowledge  are  stored  away  in  the  mentality 
for  future  needs.  A  person  may  be  an  expert  performer  in 
music,  or  any  other  mental  accomplishment,  and  not  be 
able  to  compose  music,  or  to  invent  and  devise  useful 
things  for  the  benefit  of  mankind  and  the  world.  Every 
person  possesses  the  sense  that  develops  an  ability  to  be  or- 
iginal to  a  greater  or  less  extent.  It  is  a  latent,  innate 
sense,  which  has  been  designated  as  the  sixth  sense.  This 
sense  enables  its  possessor  to  think,  to  recall  past  events, 
to  invent  and  devise,  to  seek  immortality,  to  apply  the 
rule  and  guide  of  common  sense  to  all  things  under  con- 
sideration, to  develop  latent,  inherited  ability  and  to  be- 
come a  worthy,  reputable  citizen.  The  sixth  sense  con- 
trols the  use  of  the  five  senses,  but  cannot  acquire  informa- 
tion and  knowledge  from  extraneous  sources.  It  fixes  the 
record  and  makes  use  of  knowledge  after  it  becomes  mem- 
orized, and  its  use  is  also  the  cause  of  man's  rise  or  fall 
in  public  estimation.  A  person  with  a  vigorous  mentality 
may  do  either  right  or  wrong.  His  life  history  will  be  re- 
corded in  the  mentality  by  his  deeds.  If  the  mentality 
prompts  right  doing,  the  history  will  be  praiseworthy.  If 
the  mentality  is  controlled  by  wrong  influences,  the  history 
would  better  have  been  left  unrecorded. 

The  latent,  innate  sense  that  controls  our  abilities  for 
right  and  wrong  doing,  and  which  may  be  developed  to 
an  extraordinary  degree  when  conditions  are  favorable, 
should  be  protected  from  the  inroads  created  by  bad  habits, 
the  use  of  strong  drink,  narcotics,  drugs,  tobacco  and  other 
deleterients  that  are  harmful  both  to  our  brain  cellular 
activities  and  to  our  physical  functions.    Some  people  use 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  115 

stimulants  to  create  cellular  activities  that  exhilarate  and 
cause  them  increased  pleasures.  The  use  of  stimulants 
weakens  our  ability  to  control  the  mental  activities  that 
create  the  joyful  sensations,  and  in  time  opiates  must  be 
taken  to  slow  them  down.  There  should  be  no  fun  in  in- 
viting disease  to  weaken  and  destroy  our  abilities  to  enjoy 
the  world's  beauties  and  pleasures,  or  in  calling  in  death 
to  usher  us  into  oblivion.  We  should  do  what  is  possible 
to  assist  nature  in  upbuilding  our  physical  and  mental  activ- 
ities, and  in  that  way  prolong  our  lives.  We  should  hold 
onto  the  present  existence  as  long  as  it  is  enjoyable.  It  may 
be  a  long  time  between  death  and  immortality,  unless  we 
make  vigorous  efforts  to  free  ourselves  from  influences  that 
cause  wrong  doing. 

The  sixth,  or  the  innate  sense,  should  be  designated  as 
the  super-sense,  because  it  has  enabled  mankind  to  rise 
from  an  animal  condition  and  take  possession  of  the  world 
and  its  other  creations.  The  sixth,  or  super-sense,  will  do 
more  for  us  if  we  will  improve  our  opportunities.  Instead 
of  handicapping  and  weakening  the  control  of  this  sense 
by  indulging  follies  that  eventually  distress  and  impair  our 
abilities,  we  should  employ  means  to  overcome  mental  and 
physical  frailties  that  incite  wrong  doing.  That  may  be 
done  by  resorting  to  the  prayer  method  of  upbuilding  and 
strengthening  the  mentality.  There  is  no  other  way  of  cre- 
ating a  strong  desire  for  right  doing  that  will  develop  and 
actuate  brain  cells  for  that  purpose.  Thinking  will  not  do 
it.  Ceremonies  and  ritual  services  will  not  make  sufficient 
impression  to  create  a  brain  cellular  influence.  Longing  for 
a  better  life  and  weeping  over  past  offences  will  fail  to  give 
relief.  Advice  and  absolution  vows  will  not  serve  their 
purpose.  Nothing  will  create  and  strengthen  a  desire  and 
a  purpose  for  right  doing,  and  the  overcoming  of  wicked 
influences,  but  prayer  direct  from  the  heart.  Brain  cellular 
strength  must  be  developed  and  made  active.  That  cannot 
be  done  by  soap  bubble  methods   of  invoking  aid.    Our 


116      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

prayers  must  be  sincere,  and  without  extraneous  thought 
that  would  destroy  their  effectiveness.  We  must  pray  as 
if  we  were  beseeching  help  from  immediate  danger.  That 
is  precisely  the  object  of  the  prayer.  We  want  relief  from 
mental  and  physical  perils  that  endanger  health  and  our 
hope  of  immortality.  The  relief  must  be  had  through  the 
medium  of  a  regenerated  mentality,  created  by  the  influ- 
ence of  prayer. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  117 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER    TWENTY-THREE 

THAT    MANKIND    GENERALLY     IS    THE    PRODUCT    OF    MENTAL 

TRAINING,    OF    MENTAL    DEVELOPMENT,    SHOULD    BE 

UNDERSTOOD    BY    EVERY    PERSON 

NO  two  individuals  are  exactly  alike  in  any  one  char- 
acteristic, not  even  of  the  same  family,  and  bom  from 
the  same  parents.  They  may  act  alike  and  resemble 
each  other  in  appearance,  but  there  will  always  be  a  differ- 
ence in  their  conduct,  habits,  desires  and  general  demeanor. 
This  difference  results  from  their  mental  training.  Their 
brain  cell  development  is  not  the  same.  Take  the  people 
of  different  nationalities  and  compare  their  mental  charac- 
teristics, or  their  degrees  of  intelligence  and  intellectual  at- 
tainments. If  mental  training  has  not  caused  the  difference 
in  the  habits  and  other  characteristics  of  these  people,  to 
what  source  may  the  difference  be  attributed  ?  It  must  have 
been  brought  about  by  the  various  grades  and  degrees  of 
brain  cell  development  created  by  the  peculiar  habits  and 
needs,  and  the  extent  of  their  intellectual  attainments. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  go  to  other  countries  to  ascertain 
why,  and  how,  no  two  people  are  exactly  alike.  Take  two 
children  in  the  same  family.  One  will  be  bright,  quick  to 
leam,  and  be  controlled  by  a  vivacious,  cheerful  temper- 
ament. The  other  will  be  dull,  slow  to  memorize  lessons, 
and  possess  a  sluggish  disposition.  One  child  has  an  active, 
vigorous  mentality.  The  brain  organism  of  the  other  child 
does  not  develop  its  cellular  influence  as  freely.  Were  all 
mentalities  alike,  and  all  opportunities  for  their  development 
the  same,  then  we  could  be  alike  in  our  mental  traits  and 
characteristics.  But  our  habits,  likes  and  dislikes,  our 
methods  of  living  and  kinds  of  pleasures  and  enjoyments, 
are  different.  Some  of  us  enjoy  study,  and  the  acquirement 
of  education.  Others  are  part  Indian  by  nature,  and  prefer 


118      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

outdoor  life  and  ignorance.  We  all  have  our  preferences, 
and  that  is  why  there  are  so  many  different  kinds  of  people. 

Were  the  generally  accepted  idea  that  our  minds  are 
controlled  by  supernatural  influences  correct,  we  would  all 
be  the  same  in  temperament  and  intellectual  status.  The 
supposition  that  God  leads  and  protects  us  from  evil  ought 
to  be  realized  soon,  if  ever.  The  world  has  been  traveling 
its  orbit  for  many  miUions  of  years,  and  thus  far  no  Creator, 
except  Life,,  has  made  His  appearance.  Man  has  grown 
and  developed  from  a  semi-savage  to  a  civilized  being, 
through  his  own  individual  efforts.  He  also  has  caused 
animal  and  vegetable  existence  to  thrive,  and  become  useful 
to  him.  In  all  this  progress,  nothing  but  the  hand  of  nature 
has  assisted  man  in  gaining  control  of  both  himself  and 
the  other  mundane  creations. 

The  cause  for  this  world  advancement  has  been  man's 
mentality.  It  has  been  a  conquest  won  by  the  development 
of  man's  brain  cellular  organism.  There  has  been  no 
divine  influence  to  control  this  earthly  upbuilding,  or  there 
would  have  been  no  prehistoric  man  and  no  earthly  wilder- 
ness to  civilize  and  render  useful  and  habitable.  With  this 
plain  fact  staring  man  in  the  face,  he  refuses  to  become 
responsible  for  the  world's  progress,  and  is  trying  to  find  a 
personal  God,  on  whom  he  may  shift  the  honors.  There  is 
only  one  God  who  has  helped  man  to  rescue  both  himself 
and  the  world  from  earthly  chaos,  and  that  has  been  Life, 
the  Creator.  But  man  asks.  What  is  life?  Without  life,  the 
man  could  not  ask  the  question. 

The  churchman  will  explain  that  God  created  life,  and 
is  using  that  influence  to  control  His  numerous  other  cre- 
ations. It  would  hardly  be  fair  to  ask  the  churchman  who 
created  God,  but  that  question  would  be  as  easy  to  answer 
as  it  would  be  for  him  to  explain  the  existence  of  the  God 
who  created  life.  We  do  not  know  the  personal  God  of  the 
bible  or  the  One  we  worship  in  religious  services  and  in 
our  prayers.   We  do  know  life.    It  is  an  unexplainable  in- 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  119 

fluence,  but  it  is  with  us  every  moment  of  our  existence. 
Life  restores  us  to  health,  is  the  cause  of  our  pleasures 
and  joys,  is  the  creator  of  our  children,  the  promoter  of 
our  welfare,  the  essential  of  all  things  beautiful,  and  the 
controller  of  everything  within  our  knowledge.  What  is 
life?  The  big  wheel  that  turns  the  universe. 


120   .  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF  THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   TWENTY-FOUR 

THAT  THE   MIND  SHOULD  BE  DEVELOPED  AND  UPBUILDED  BY 
CAREFUL    METHODS    TO    CAUSE    IT    TO    BECOME    STRONG, 
VIGOROUS,  ACTIVE  AND  USEFUL.    WE  SHOULD  CULTI- 
VATE OUR  MINDS  AND  FREE  THEM  FROM  HARM- 
FUL TENDENCIES,  IN  THE  SAME  PAINSTAK- 
ING   MANNER    WE    CULTIVATE    OTHER 
MATERIAL     THINGS      FOR     OUR 
PERSONAL    NEED 

THERE  are  two  methods  of  mental  training  for  the 
acquirement  of  knowledge,  one  of  which  should  be 
avoided  as  detrimental  when  employed  to  an  excessive 
degree.  Cramming  the  mind  with  book  knowledge  is  a 
harmful  method  of  developing  an  ability  to  memorize, 
which  will,  in  time,  become  a  dominating  mental  factor  to 
the  partial  exclusion  of  other  forms  of  mental  activity.  It 
is  essential  that  the  memory  function  should  be  made  strong 
and  vigorous,  but  its  development  should  not  be  so  protracted 
and  continuous  as  to  exclude  the  upbuilding  of  other  im- 
portant mental  attributes.  Should  that  exclusion  occur,  the 
trend  of  the  mind  or  mentaUty  will  lack  vigor  and  force. 
Memory  is  not  an  agressive,  forceful  mental  function.  It 
is  not  a  creative  abiUty,  and  there  must  be  other  mental 
forces  or  energy  developed  to  cause  memory  to  be  useful 
and  practical.  A  watch  or  other  mechanical  device  is  value- 
less unless  it  has  some  form  of  power  to  propel  its  mechan- 
ism. Storing  away  knowledge  in  the  mind  is  not  advisable 
if  there  is  no  cellular  energy  to  make  practical  use  of  it. 
Money  in  a  bank  is  worthless  as  a  circulatory  medium  when 
there  is  no  opportunity  to  invest  it.  Many  minds  have  been 
practically  ruined  by  a  misdirected  desire  to  cram  them  with 
book  knowledge  at  the  expense  of  developing  mental  vigor 
and  strength.  Practical  thought  and  deeds  are  more  val- 
uable to  mankind,  and  the  world,  than  book  knowledge 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  121 

stored  away  in  brain  organ  memory  cells  that  cannot  be 
used. 

All  mentalities  are  constructed  alike  so  far  as  brain 
centers  and  cellular  functions  are  concerned.  Brain  organs 
are  inherited  in  the  same  manner  that  any  physical  part  of 
the  body  is  handed  down  the  line  of  ancestry  by  our  pro- 
genitors. But  the  cellular  developments  of  the  mentality 
differ,  or  there  woul9  not  be  such  varied  mental  character- 
istics. If  a  mentality  lacks  vigor  and  is  not  practical  in 
thought  and  deed,  the  deficiency  may  be  developed  by 
mental  effort  and  the  essentials  to  a  successful  career  sup- 
plied in  that  way.  In  other  words  a  defective,  impractical 
mind  may  be  reconstructed  by  mental  development,  pro- 
vided the  brain  cellular  functions  have  not  been  injured 
by  disease,  senility,  or  the  long  excessive  use  of  any  one 
particular  mental  function  to  the  deteriment  of  another. 
Practical  thought  is  an  upbuilding  mental  attribute.  Prac- 
tical acts  and  deeds  create  good  will,  kindness,  contentment, 
happiness,  success  and  prosperity. 

There  is  another  way  to  consider  the  development  and 
upbuilding  of  the  mind,  and  that  is  by  a  careful  investiga- 
tion of  the  cause  and  activities  of  both  mental  and  physical 
functions.  Mental  activities  incite  physical  movements,  and 
if  we  are  lethargic  and  lazy  this  lack  of  desire  to  be  active 
physically  is  due  to  want  of  mental  vigor.  Some  one  of  the 
mental  functions  needs  speeding  up.  If  we  are  impelled  to 
overdo  in  any  particular  line  of  physical  activity  there  is 
need  for  slowing  down  a  mental  function.  In  order  to  live 
reasonably,  sensibly  and  in  accordance  with  common  sense 
ideas  we  should  preserve  mental  poise  and  balance.  The 
mentality  creates,  prompts  and  actuates  all  of  our  voluntary 
activities,  and  there  is  only  one  way  to  slow  down  or  speed 
up  one  or  more  of  our  mental  functions;  and  that  is  by 
increasing  and  upbuilding  a  desire  for  right  doing.  Doing 
right  in  all  things  is  the  crux  of  a  perfect  life.  We  may  not 
be  able  to  train  ourselves  to  that  high  degree  of  excellence, 


122      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

but  the  effort  should  be  made,  and  in  response  to  that  effort 
our  burden  of  woes,  troubles,  mental  defects  and  other  de- 
ficiencies will  be  correspondingly  lessened. 

The  mentality  is  a  cellular  organ  susceptible  to  develop- 
ment, cultivation  and  upbuilding  almost  to  a  degree  of  per- 
fection. That  state  of  practical  culture  does  not  result 
entirely  from  the  acquirement  of  an  education,  nor  does 
it  depend  upon  the  attainment  of  a  religious  training,  al- 
though both  of  these  adjuncts  to  a  worthy  life  are  desirable. 
The  one  important,  indispensable  virtue  needed  above  every- 
thing else  to  make  us  happy  and  respected  is  an  ability  to  do 
right  in  thought  and  deed.  That  ability  is  within  the  reach 
of  every  person  endowed  with  an  ordinary  mind.  It  will 
be  created  by  a  strict  and  rigid  system  of  mental  training 
brought  about  by  studious,  persistent  mental  effort.  We  cul- 
tivate and  develop  for  our  personal  benefit  almost  every- 
thing in  earthly  creation,  except  our  own  mentalities.  We 
try  to  upbuild  these  dispensers  of  our  welfare  by  educa- 
tional and  religious  methods,  but  that  way  of  causing  our 
right  doing  lacks  vigor  and  strength,  and  does  not  always 
effect  its  purpose.  We  need  more  practical  thought,  and  a 
better  system  of  creating  mental  and  physical  energy.  Strong, 
active  minds  will  inspire  practical  thoughts  and  deeds  when 
actuated  by  a  desire  for  right  doing.  We  should  create 
that  desire  by  sincere  prayerful  endeavor.  It  will  give  us 
strength  to  do  right  in  all  of  our  undertakings. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  128 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER    TWENTY-FIVE 

THAT  THERE  IS   NO  LOGICAL   REASON   WHY    MAN    SHOULD  BE 

BAPTIZED   OR    SUBJECT    HIMSELF    TO   ANY    FORM    OF 

CHURCH    CEREMONY,  OR  OTHER   MEANS  OF 

SUBSCRIBING      TO      ARTICLES      OF 

FAITH,  BEFORE  HE  WILL 

BE    ENTITLED    TO 

SALVATION 

MAN  is  his  own  guardian  angel.  No  other  mortal  could 
possibly  control  his  endeavors  to  be  saved.  No  mortal 
holds  the  keys  to  heaven,  or  has  control  over  the  way 
to  reach  that  blissful  existence.  The  ceremony  of  baptism 
will  not  purify  a  mentality,  and  it  must  be  common  knowl- 
edge that  signing  articles  of  faith,  submitting  to  ritual  cer- 
emonies, or  having  prayers  mumbled  over  us,  will  not  add 
a  farthing  to  the  value  of  our  mental  record.  Going  to 
church  is  a  commendable  act,  not  because  it  will  be  the 
saving  clause  of  our  life's  history,  for  it  will  not.  It  posi- 
tively will  not  be  accepted  as  evidence  that  we  are  worthy 
of  salvation.  Joining  a  church,  or  any  other  religious  de- 
nomination or  sect,  is  like  becoming  a  member  of  a  social 
club,  so  far  as  the  act  itself  is  concerned.  There  is  this 
difference.  Joining  a  church  will  afford  better  opportunities 
to  train  the  mentality  for  right  doing. 

To  explain  the  subject  of  eternal  salvation  more  clearly, 
it  will  be  necessary  to  frequently  refer  to  the  importance 
of  understanding  what  brain  cell  control  means  to  a  men- 
tality. The  brain  organism  is  the  seat  of  all  mental  en- 
deavor, the  vital  center  of  human  life,  the  propagator  of 
every  human  thought,  act,  deed  or  impulse.  Mental  effort 
is  the  inciting  agent  that  prompts  our  thoughts  and  other 
mental  endeavors.  It  causes  us  to  do  right,  or  to  do  wrong. 
It  brings  either  happiness,  sorrow,  emotion  or  other  mental 
activities  to  upbuild  or  destroy  our  hopes    and  ambitions. 


124      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

When  the  mentality  is  active  and  vigorous,  mental  eflFort 
will  keep  our  bodily  functions  in  good  condition,  and  aid 
in  their  restoration  to  health  when  necessary.  But  mental 
effort  is  only  an  agent.  Its  master  is  the  influence  that  con- 
trols the  mentality.  That  influence  is  created  by  brain  cellu- 
lar development.  That  development  is  brought  about  by 
pur  mental  training,  which  begins  with  the  cradle  and  ends 
with  the  grave. 

Mental  effort  prompts  thoughts,  desires,  impulses,  emo- 
tions, acts  or  deeds,  in  accordance  with  the  development 
created  by  our  mental  training.  If  we  have  done  wrong, 
and  continue  our  wrong  doing,  there  will  be  a  correspond- 
ing brain  cellular  development.  If  our  thoughts  and  deeds 
for  wrong  doing  overbalance  in  number  and  intensity  our 
thoughts  and  deeds  for  right  doing,  the  influence  thus 
created  will  dominate  the  mentality,  and  cause  us  to  become 
evil  and  wicked.  To  overcome  that  very  undesirable,  domi- 
nating mental  influence,  we  must  develop  brain  cells  for 
right  doing.  The  method  of  regenerating  the  mentality  re- 
quires mental  effort  of  an  extraordinary  nature.  The  effort 
must  be  made  in  direct  conflict  with  the  dominating  mental 
control.  The  mental  forces  for  right  doing  must  be  mastered 
by  supreme  effort  and  hold  together  until  sufficient  brain 
cellular  influence  may  be  developed  to  control  the  mentality 
for  right  doing.  Fortunately  for  every  human  being,  there 
always  have  been  enough  good  thoughts  and  deeds  in  life 
to  have  developed  brain  cellular  influence  for  right  doing 
to  a  certain  degree.  That  influence  when  called  into  use 
will  prompt  mental  effort  to  battle  down  the  control  for 
wrong  doing,  if  supported  by  the  desires  and  aspirations  of 
the  person  seeking  regeneration. 

The  reformation  of  an  evil-minded  person  from  wrong 
to  right  doing  is  a  physical  process,  confined  absolutely  to 
the  individual  to  be  reformed.  No  mortal  except  the  per- 
son, himself,  could  make  the  change.  It  is  a  physical  im- 
possibility.   Whatever  traits  for  wrong  doing  we  possess, 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  126 

not  inherited,  become  fixtures  in  the  cellular  development 
through  the  use  of  the  senses.  As  previously  explained,  the 
mentality  is  a  physical  organism  in  which  myriads  of  brain 
or  nerve  cells  are  located.  Certain  centers  of  these  cells 
are  actuated  and  controlled  by  the  five  senses,  touch,  taste, 
sight,  smell,  and  hearing.  Every  kind  of  knowledge  and 
information  concerning  human  and  worldly  affairs  is  ac- 
quired through  these  sources.  Nature  has  sealed  the  men- 
tality in  such  a  way,  by  means  of  its  peculiar  processes, 
that  one  person  knows  nothing  about  the  mental  affairs  of 
another,  unless  the  person  is  willing  to  communicate  the 
information.  Only  the  person  interested  knows  what  is  in 
his  mind. 

There  could  be  no  such  thing  as  an  ability  to  help  man 
to  salvation,  except  by  advice,  example  and  encouragement. 
Man  was  never  endowed  with  power  to  change  a  fellow 
mortal's  mentality.  The  tendencies  for  wrong  doing  are 
physical,  mental  fixtures  in  the  form  of  a  brain  cellular  de- 
velopment. That  development  of  the  mentality  cannot  be 
actuated  or  changed  except  by  a  mental  effort  of  the  person 
possessing  it.  The  person  desirous  of  reformation  must 
comply  with  nature's  laws,  or  keep  on  doing  wrong.  He 
may  derive  comfort  from  ceremonies  to  drive  evil  spirits 
out  of  his  life,  but  they  are  there  to  stay,  unless  the  person 
is  willing  to  do  what  every  human  has  had  to  do  to  regen- 
erate his  mentality. 


126  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  TWENTY-SIX 

STIRRING  UP  THE  EMOTIONS  TO  RECRUIT   CHURCH    MEMBERS 

IS  NOT  ADVISABLE.    SUCH  METHODS  OF  INDUCING  PEOPLE 

TO    REFORM    THEIR    SINFUL    WAYS    SHOULD    NOT    BE 

SANCTIONED     BY     RELIGIOUS      ORGANIZATIONS 

THE  well  known  injurious  effect  of  strongly  developed 
emotions  on  the  mind  of  a  nervous  person  should  be 
convincing  proof  that  emotional  religion  is  not  advis- 
able as  a  reformative  agent.  It  is  true  that  stirring  up  the 
emotions  at  a  reUgious  meeting  is  an  effective  method  of 
recruiting  church  members,  but  as  a  rule  people  who  shed 
tears  and  fall  to  their  knees  whenever  they  hear  a  preacher 
shout  hallelujah  are  not  safe  and  reliable  converts.  Excit- 
ing the  emotions  for  religious  purposes  is  like  painting  a 
house  to  hide  the  weather  stains.  Beneath  the  surface  of 
sanctity  there  will  still  remain  the  thought  and  desire  for 
wrong  doing.  Emotions  are  mental  impressions,  instinctive 
impulses.  They  are  manifestations  created  by  the  five 
senses,  and  are  of  a  physical  nature.  They  are  not  mental 
activities  in  a  true  sense,  although  they  may  be  sufficiently 
developed  to  become  nervous  diseases. 

All  vertebrate  animals,  including  man,  are  subject  to 
emotional  excitement.  The  five  senses,  touch,  taste,  sight, 
smell  and  hearing,  incite  rage,  fear,  awe,  affection,  joy, 
tenderness,  repulsion  and  similar  sensations  in  animals  as 
well  as  in  mankind.  These  sensations  are  the  promptings 
of  instinct  and  do  not  belong  to  that  part  of  the  mentality 
controlled  by  the  intellect.  Man,  because  of  his  highly  de- 
veloped nervous  system,  is  more  temperamental  than  other 
vertebrates,  and  is  subject  to  emotional  sensations  in  a 
greater  and  more  effective  degree.  Especially  is  this  true  of 
people  whose  religious  training  has  caused  them  to  regard 
religion  as  a  spiritual  acquirement,  separate  and  distinct 
from  the  ordinary  affairs  of  an  earthly  existence.  The  more 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  127 

nervous  and  hysterical  a  person  may  be,  the  greater  will  be 
his  inclination  to  see  and  hear  things.  There  is  only  a  step 
between  emotional  awe  evoked  by  a  religious  ceremony  and 
downright  religious  frenzy.  Both  are  emotions  incited  by 
an  instinctively  nervous  temperament.  Emotions  may  also 
be  aroused  by  the  imagination.  But  they  never  result  from 
careful  thought  and  studious  effort  to  store  the  mind  with 
knowledge. 

Both  instinct  and  emotions  are  creations  of  impulse  and 
are  destructive  to  peace  and  comfort  when  developed  into 
a  controlling  mental  influence.  Nervous,  emotional  people 
acquire  the  habit  of  seeing  ghosts  and  spirits,  others  fancy 
that  they  are  afflicted  with  chronic  diseases,  and  many  ap- 
parently well  informed  persons  believe  that  they  are  con- 
trolled by  supernatural  influences.  Such  mental  aberrations 
should  be  overcome  and  banished  from  the  mind.  They 
do  not  indicate  perfect  sanity,  and  if  allowed  to  grow  in 
strength  and  influence  they  will  unbalance  the  mind  and 
cause  dementia.  A  religious  belief  that  advocates  emotional 
excitement  to  induce  the  conversion  of  unbelievers  will 
fail  in  its  purpose.  Emotion  will  not,  cannot  permanently 
change  the  trend  of  mental  activities.  It  may  hold  tenden- 
cies for  wrong  doing  in  restraint  while  the  excitement  pre- 
vails, but  emotion  is  not  a  sensation  that  creates  cellular 
activities  and  could  not  be  made  a  regenerative  agent.  There 
is  only  one  eflFective  way  to  regenerate  a  mentality,  and  that 
method  is  fully  explained  elsewhere  in  this  volume. 

The  diversity  of  belief  in  present-day  religions  is  caused 
by  emotions  incited  by  varied  ceremonies  and  other  means 
of  arousing  instinctive  reformation.  We  enter  a  church 
with  a  feeling  of  awe  because  the  premises  are  dedicated 
to  the  worship  of  a  personal  God,  who  is  supposed  to  watch 
over  our  welfare.  The  music,  services,  ceremonies  and 
other  rites  impress  us  with  the  importance  of  yielding 
submissively  to  a  mysterious  influence  which  impels  us  to 
feel  that   God    is  near.    That   same   devout   sensation  is 


128      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

aroused  when  in  the  presence  of  the  dead,  and  there  is 
an  instinctive  feeling  that  possibly  the  spirit  of  the  de- 
parted may  be  hovering  over  us.  These  emotions  are  im- 
pulsive and  are  created  by  the  solemnity  of  the  occasion. 
Similar  sensations  may  be  aroused  by  other  circumstances 
and  conditions.  A  properly  conducted  spiritual  seance  in- 
cites creepy  feelings.  A  dark  path  through  lonely  woods, 
or  the  passing  of  a  graveyard  at  night,  will  send  chills  speed- 
ing up  the  spinal  column.  But  these  sensations  are  transi- 
tory. They  are  not  mental  creations,  and  are  not  to  be 
associated  with  mental  activities. 

Successful  business  and  professional  men  do  not  allow 
an  emotional  nature  to  guide  and  control  their  affairs.  It 
requires  good,  practical  common  sense  to  achieve  success 
in  any  reasonable  undertaking.  No  great  industrial  or  other 
enterprise  was  ever  safely  guided  through  its  early  troubles 
by  emotional  thought  or  the  impulses  of  instinct.  Emotion 
is  not  practical  and  instinct  has  no  upbuilding  power,  or 
animal  life  would  now  be  stepping  in  the  footsteps  of  man. 
For  that  reason  we  should  not  adopt  emotional  religion 
and  its  fallacies  of  superstition,  misbelief  and  tradition 
as  a  guide  in  our  search  for  immortality.  It  will  require 
a  mind  purged  of  misbelief  and  unreaUties  to  merit  the 
favor  of  the  Great  Creator.  Such  a  mentality  cannot  be 
purified  by  emotional  conversion. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  129 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  TWENTY-SEVEN 

THAT  GOD,    NOT   THE   PERSONAL  GOD   WE   WORSHIP,   BUT   THE 

REAL  GOD  OF  THE  UNIVERSE,  WILL  GUIDE,  CONTROL  AND 

PROTECT  US   THROUGH   THE   MEDIUM   OF  THE  GERM 

OF  LIFE  WITH   WHICH    MANKIND   IS   ENDOWED 

THE  existence  of  a  personal  God  should  not  be  con- 
sidered when  contemplating  the  abandonment  of 
wrong  doing.  Preparation  during  mortal  life  for  an 
immortal  transcendency  should  not  include  thoughts  or 
expectations  of  supernatural  guidance.  Man  was  en- 
dowed with  a  super-mentality  for  the  purpose  of  upbuilding 
both  himself  and  the  world,  and  that  super-intellect  is  to 
be  his  guiding  influence,  at  all  times  and  under  all  circum- 
stances. Look  at  this  fact  from  the  standpoint  of  the  exis- 
tence of  a  personal  God.  We  are  given  to  understand  that 
God  controls  His  creations  in  the  same  way  that  a  kind 
father  of  a  family  should  govern  and  upbuild  the  welfare 
of  those  dependent  on  him.  God  is  our  heavenly  Father, 
and  He  is  supposed  to  overlook  and  control  our  conduct, 
and  to  answer  our  prayers  when  we  beseech  His  guidance, 
influence  and  mercy.  God,  the  personal  God,  also  is  ex- 
pected to  prevent  warfare  between  His  mortal  offspring, 
and  to  alleviate  public  distress  and  cause  prosperity,  good 
will  and  happiness  to  prevail  throughout  His  earthly  king- 
dom. Man  is  the  alleged  chosen  creation  of  the  personal 
God  we  worship,  and  we  are  told  that  we  were  created 
after  His  own  image.  The  entire  human  family  is  said 
to  be  composed  of  God's  children.  We  are  further  informed 
of  the  wonderful  majesty  and  power  of  the  personal  God, 
and  that  His  justice  and  mercy  are  unlimited  when  be- 
stowed for  the  welfare  of  mankind.  This  and  other  relig- 
ious teachings  have  caused  us  to  believe  in  the  existence  of 
a  personal  God.   But  there  has  been  no  actual  proof  shown 


130      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

to  substantiate  these  statements.  Biblical  tradition  could 
not  be  accepted  as  satisfactory  evidence,  because  the  bible 
is  the  work  of  man.  There  are  no  miracles  in  this  modern 
age  to  convince  us  that  a  personal  God  is  ever  present  with 
us,  and  our  hope  of  His  divine  guidance  is  evidently  without 
foundation. 

There  are  many  good,  worthy  people,  believers  in  a  per- 
sonal God,  who  are  suffering  from  distress  in  its  varied 
forms  throughout  civilization  and  who  are  patiently  wait- 
ing relief  in  answer  to  their  prayers.  This  relief  never 
comes  from  God,  the  divine  mind,  or  any  other  super- 
natural source.  Instances  may  be  found  in  any  community 
where  prayers  to  God  are  said  to  have  revived  and  caused 
people  to  regain  health  and  vigor  who  were  afflicted  with 
what  seemed  to  be  a  fatal  illness.  But  no  credit  is  given 
to  the  resuscitating  ability  of  the  sick  persons,  nor  is  any- 
thing said  about  the  countless  victims  of  similar  forms  of 
illness,  who  die  regardless  of  repeated  prayers  and  peti- 
tions speeded  heavenward  for  their  return  to  health.  Recall 
the  ruthless  massacres  of  christians  in  foreign  lands,  be- 
cause they  believed  in  a  personal  God.  Turn  back  to  the 
religious  wars,  where  all  interested  were  children  of  God, 
and  note  the  uninterrupted  slaughter  that  prevailed  until 
one  side  or  the  other  gave  up  the  fight  from  exhaustion. 
There  was  then  no  divine  interposition  to  save  the  lives 
of  those  who  worshipped  a  personal  God.  Consult  your 
own  thoughts  for  proof  of  the  existence  of  a  personal  God, 
such  as  we  worship.  There  is  no  such  proof,  notwithstand- 
ing your  own  efforts  and  desires  to  supply  it.  There  is  a 
God,  a  Sublime  Creator.  A  God  to  whom  we,  and  all 
else  in  creation,  owe  our  existence.  But  He  does  not  per- 
sonally overlook  our  welfare.  He  does  not  spread  a  divine 
mind  throughout  the  world  for  the  benefit  of  mediums, 
healers  and  their  ilk,  nor  does  He  send  forth  a  supernatural 
influence  to  guide  our  conduct  and  protect  us  from  danger. 

God  is  with  us  personally  at  all  times  during  our  earthly 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  181 

career — not  as  a  personal  God,  in  accordance  with  the 
popular  belief,  but  as  the  supreme  principle  of  our  mental 
and  physical  being,  provided  we  make  good  use  of  that  God- 
like prerogative.  The  germ  of  mortal  life,  with  which  man 
was  endowed  at  the  beginning,  included  the  bestowal  of  a 
super-intellect  which  no  other  earthly  creation  possesses. 
That  germ  is  God-like  in  its  nature,  inasmuch  as  it  has 
given  mankind  control  of  the  world  and  all  of  its  belongings. 
It  establishes  the  line  of  demarcation  between  man  and 
other  animal  life,  and  endows  us  with  an  intellectual  ability 
not  found  elsewhere  in  animate  existence.  Unfortunately 
the  endowment,  which  was  bestowed  on  mankind  to  be 
used  for  his  own  good  purposes  and  for  the  welfare  of  the 
world,  is  frequently  perverted  and  made  the  cause  of  great 
misfortune  and  distress.  It  is  this  perversion  of  man's 
intellect  that  creates  war  and  its  woes,  poverty  and  its  dis- 
tress, ignorance  and  its  vices,  and  other  forms  of  evil  that 
bring  about  so  much  suffering,  contention  and  trouble. 
These  conditions  could  not  exist  if  a  personal  God  con- 
trolled and  influenced  our  activities,  because  He  would 
give  us  relief.  That  evident  fact  should  preclude  and  pro- 
hibit the  belief  in  a  personal  God,  and  prevent  the  exis- 
tence of  any  religion,  fad  or  semi-religious  fallacy  that 
advocates  such  a  misrepresentation. 

It  is  not  evidence  of  good  sense  to  continue  the  worship 
of  a  personal  God  who  does  not  respond  to  our  invoca- 
tions. The  same  prayerful  effort  for  the  development  of 
the  intellect  would  meet  with  a  response  and  give  us 
unbounded  happiness  and  prosperity.  Prayer  for  right 
doing,  if  persistent,  fervent  and  honest,  will  not  only  cause 
us  to  do  right,  but  will  upbuild  the  mind  and  stimulate 
greater  mental  and  physical  vigor.  The  mentality  is  the 
seat,  the  center  of  mental  and  physical  energy.  From  that 
source  all  of  our  activities  originate.  We  do  right  or  wrong 
in  accordance  with  our  mental  development.  If  that  devel- 
opment is  for  right  doing  we  will  make  good  use  of  the 


132       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

germ  of  life  with  which  the  God  of  the  universe  endowed 
us.  He  then  will  be  with  us  constantly  and  will  guide 
our  thoughts  and  actions.  We  also  will  become  worthy 
of  a  transcendency  to  immortality. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  183 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  TWENTY-EIGHT 

THAT   MAN   SHOULD   ENDEAVOR   TO   HASTEN   THE   PROCESS  OF 

DEVELOPING    HIS    MENTAL    AND    PHYSICAL    HEALTH     AND 

VIGOR,  BY  ABANDONING  THE  USE  OF  NARCOTICS,  STRONG 

DRINK,      TOBACCO      AND      OTHER     DELETERIENTS.        HE 

SHOULD   BEAR    IN    MIND   THAT   BOTH    MENTAL    AND 

BODILY     HEALTH     MAY     BE    DERIVED    FROM     LIFE, 

OR    THAT    A    LACK    OF    THAT    INFLUENCE    MAY 

PROVE    TO    BE    HIS    UNDOING 

LIFE  either  invigorates  and  strengthens  both  mind 
and  body,  or  it  will  destroy  them  by  assisting  detri- 
mental influences  to  cause  disease  and  decadence. 
That  may  seem  like  a  paradoxical  statement,  but  it  is  true. 
We  must  regard  life  as  our  Creator,  the  God  we  worship, 
the  Influence  to  which  we  offer  our  prayers.  We  know  of 
no  other  God,  or  no  other  Influence  that  watches  over  and 
controls  our  existence.  When  we  call  upon  Ufe  to  guide 
our  prayers  and  show  us  what  to  do,  there  is  an  immediate 
response  by  upbuilding  encouraging  thought  and  impulse. 
Thought  and  impulse  prompt  deeds.  When  we  indulge  in 
narcotics,  our  minds  are  stupefied  and  our  physical  func- 
tions lack  vigor.  Life  then  is  unable  to  come  to  our  assist- 
ance. When  we  take  stimulants,  life  aids  us  in  losing 
control  of  our  mentalities,  and  in  that  way  hastens  our 
undoing.  Continued  use  of  narcotics,  tobacco  and  strong 
drink  will  impair  both  mental  and  physical  health,  and  in 
time  disqualify  us  for  either  reasonable  enjoyment  or  busi- 
ness pursuits.  We  should  have  strong,  vigorous  minds  and 
bodies  to  meet  and  successfully  combat  the  vicissitudes 
of  mortal  existence,  and  for  that  reason  should  beware  the 
use  of  narcotics  and  stimulants. 

It  is  difficult  for  us  to  discontinue  the  use  of  narcotics, 
or  to  stop  taking  stimulants  after  the  habit  has  been  ac- 


134      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

quired.  The  mentality  demands  either  the  drug  that  quiets 
its  activities,  or  the  stimulant  that  starts  them  going  at  a 
more  rapid  pace.  It  must  be  apparent  that  either  of  these 
habits  will  bring  on  mental  and  physical  weakness,  if  long 
continued.  The  physical  organs  rely  upon  the  mentality  for 
vigor  to  cause  them  to  function.  Should  that  mental  energy 
be  lacking,  disease  or  weakness  of  the  physical  organs 
must  follow.  When  we  think  or  say  that  we  will  not  stop 
the  use  of  drink,  tobacco  or  drugs  because  we  are  not 
afraid  of  them,  we  then  confess  that  the  habit  has  become 
established.  When  we  try  to  stop  the  habit  and  fail,  that 
is  an  indication  that  sometime  we  will  try  again  and  per- 
haps be  successful. 

It  is  pitiful  to  see  a  strong  man  become  a  slave  to  habit, 
especially  a  habit  that  will  eventually  destroy  his  manhood, 
and  cause  him  to  be  a  mental  and  physical  wreck  in  his 
later  years,  when  he  most  needs  health  and  vigor.  But  that 
is  the  invariable,  inevitable  end  of  all  victims  of  bad  habits. 
There  could  be  no  other  end.  We  could  not  succeed  in  any 
walk  of  life  without  strong  mentalities.  If  we  drug  these 
founts  of  our  learning  and  well  doing,  or  if  we  over- 
stimulate  their  activities,  the  ability  to  guide  us  successfully 
in  our  undertakings  must  necessarily  fail.  Life  is  kind 
to  us,  but  it  cannot  actuate  a  half  dead  mentality,  when  its 
vigor  has  been  sapped  by  too  much  stimulation,  nor  can 
life  energize  a  mentality  that  has  been  drugged  to  ever- 
lasting stupidity.  Those  are  the  sure  results  of  the  excessive 
use  of  narcotics,  strong  drink,  tobacco  and  similar  harm- 
ful indulgences. 

There  is  another  way  to  consider  the  importance  of  pre- 
serving our  mentalities,  although  it  does  not,  as  a  rule,  ex- 
ert an  influence  over  the  man  who  likes  to  drink,  smoke 
and  have  a  good  time  generally.  Such  men  cannot  expect 
future  salvation  and  continue  their  efforts  to  destroy  them- 
selves. Since  man  has  had  a  history,  it  has  always  been 
his  belief  that  there  was  a  future  reward  for  right  doing. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  135 

We  hold  to  that  belief  now,  although  we  have  no  certain 
knowledge  of  what  that  reward  will  be.  Most  of  us  think 
that  it  will  be  immortality.  Whatever  the  reward  for  right 
living  may  be,  it  must  result  from  the  record  established 
by  our  mentalities.  The  mentality  is  the  man.  The  deeds 
that  our  mental  organism  has  prompted  must  stand  as  our 
life  record,  for  right  or  wrong  doing. 

What  will  be  the  fate  of  the  man  with  a  mentality  that 
has  influenced  the  destruction  of  itself  by  the  use  of  strong 
drink,  or  any  other  habit  capable  of  impairing  the  health 
and  vigor  of  both  the  mentality  and  the  man?  That  is  a 
good,  sober  query  for  the  man  of  bad  habits  to  answer. 
When  it^  can  be  satisfactorily  proven  that  the  mentality  is 
not  the  man,  shorn  of  his  bodily  functions;  when  the  fact 
can  be  established  that  a  man  may  do  things  without  the 
promptings  of  his  mentality;  when  man  himself  may 
know  through  the  medium  of  his  mentality  that  his  heart 
will  beat  one  time  after  his  mentality  has  been  paralyzed, 
or  stricken  with  death,  then  and  then  only  will  we  believe 
that  the  record  of  man's  mentality  will  not  be  used  to  judge 
his  worthiness    or  unworthiness   for  immortality. 


136  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  TWENTY-NINE 

THAT    CHURCH    ORGANIZATIONS,    SECTS    AND    CULTS    SHOULD 

ADVOCATE    PRACTICAL    THOUGHT,    AS    A    MEANS 

OF     PROMOTING   HUMAN   WELFARE 

SERMONS,  lectures  and  literature  based  on  traditional 
lore  are  not  proper  food  for  the  public  mind.  Man 
has  lived  many  years  since  bible  and  scriptural  days, 
and  is  now  traveling  on  railroad  trains,  automobiles,  aero- 
planes and  other  means  of  rapid  transit.  He  is  not  in 
sympathy  with  religious  ideas  propounded  two  or  more 
thousand  years  ago.  He  wants,  and  must  have  a  religion, 
or  a  belief  in  future  salvation,  that  is  based  on  fact,  and 
not  on  guess-work,  superstition  and  tradition.  Talk  to  a 
practical  man  about  the  marvels  of  the  bible,  and  he  will 
look  at  the  telephone  and  smile.  Think  of  the  miracles 
alleged  to  have  been  performed  by  Christ  and  others  of 
the  miracle  age,  and,  if  practical,  your  mind  will  refer  to 
wireless  telegraphy,  the  phonograph,  or  others  of  the  mar- 
velous modern  inventions.  We  are  not  only  living  in  an 
age  of  wonders,  but  these  practical  man-miracles  are  com- 
ing thicker  and  faster  than  ever  before.  They  are  even 
being  used  to  slaughter  humanity. 

Compare  the  difference  between  man's  condition  and 
methods  of  living  in  the  days  of  Christ  with  his  present 
improved  and  comfortable  existence.  Refer  to  man's  al- 
most total  lack  of  care  during  illness,  or  when  injured,  or 
disqualified  for  work  for  any  reason,  during  the  age  in 
which  bible  history  was  written,  and  then  look  at  our  hos- 
pitals, the  efficiency  of  therapeutics  and  surgery,  and  other 
modem  treatment  of  people  in  mental  or  physical  distress. 
Then  go  and  hear  a  sermon,  or  a  talk  on  methods  of  sal- 
vation, and  you  will  be  reminded  of  the  days  when  man 
travelled  on  foot,  ate  and  drank  very  much  like  a  savage 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  187 

being,  was  cast  out  when  demented,  and  was  nailed  to  a 
cross  for  capital  punishment.  There  has  been  no  marked 
improvement  in  church  methods  of  reforming  sinners.  It 
is  true  that  man's  genius  has  added  other  means  of  creat- 
ing an  interest  in  divine  worship  by  inventing  new  and  bet- 
ter musical  instruments  to  be  used  in  church  music.  Chris- 
tian science,  also,  has  added  another  feature  to  the  scrip- 
tural admonitions  handed  down  by  the  Redeemer,  in  which 
Christ's  supposed  method  of  healing  by  means  of  the  di- 
vine mind  is  its  chief  argument.  Otherwise,  we  must  either 
go  to  heaven  or  hell,  in  accordance  with  these  semi-civilized 
religious  ideas. 

According  to  man's  best  modern,  practical  information, 
there  is  no  proof  of  either  heaven  or  hell.  If  there  is  a 
heaven,  there  should  also  be  a  hell.  God  would  not  send  a 
good  person  to  heaven,  as  a  reward  for  right  living,  and 
let  the  wicked  man  go  scot  free.  That  would  not  be  dis- 
pensing justice.  But  there  must  be  a  method  by  which 
man  may  work  out  his  own  salvation,  just  as  he  would 
acquire  knowledge,  and  that  is  by  the  use  of  his  mentality. 
Go  over  the  reasons  why  the  Creator  endowed  man  with  a 
superior  mentality,  once  more.  All  vertebrate  animals 
possess  the  five  senses,  touch,  taste,  sight,  smell  and  hearing, 
and  exist  by  their  use.  Man,  as  a  vertebrate,  also  was  en- 
dowed with  these  senses,  and  in  addition  to  them  he  was 
given  a  sixth,  or  super-sense,  which  enables  him  to  think, 
invent  and  perfect  useful  articles,  and  to  prepare  himself 
for  immortality. 

Preparing  for  immortality,  then,  is  like  learning  arith- 
metic, or  acquiring  knowledge  of  any  kind.  It  is  like  in- 
venting useful  articles,  and  is  a  mental  operation.  Man,  in 
the  day  of  Christ,  was  not  as  well  developed  mentally  as 
he  is  now.  He  could  not  think  as  clearly,  and  his  ideas  of 
religious  justice  and  mercy  were  crude  and  rudimentary. 
Man  now  seeks  a  practical  way  of  reaching  immortality, 
without  resorting  to  a  belief  in  the  supernatural.    He  de- 


138      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

sires  to  prepare  himself  for  that  blessing  by  a  means  that 
will  conform  to  his  present  good  common-sense  methods 
of  doing  things.  Man  wants  to  discard  unnecessary  ad- 
juncts to  religious  conversion,  and  get  down  to  plain,  ordi- 
nary facts.  That  method  of  reaching  salvation  must  be  by 
mental  development.  How  that  development  may  be  most 
successfully  accomplished   is  what  man  wants  to  know. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  189 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  THIRTY 

THAT  PRAYING  FOR  THE  WELFARE  OF  THOSE  WE  LOVE,  OR  FOR 
PEOPLE    IN    DISTRESS    AND    IN    NEED    OF    ASSISTANCE,    IS    A 
BEAUTIFUL,    COMMENDABLE    CUSTOM    THAT   DESERVES   TO 
BE  PERPETUATED.     BUT  IT  IS  LIKE  PRAYING  FOR  RAIN, 
ABUNDANT    HARVEST,    WEALTH,    HONORS,    OR    ANY- 
THING   ELSE    OUTSIDE    OF    OUR    OWN    INDIVIDUAL 
ACTIVITIES.      THE    PRAYERS    WILL    NOT 
BE   ANSWERED 

NATURE  has  barred  us  from  assisting  fellow  mortals 
except  by  our  own  individual  efforts.  Our  supplica- 
tions for  public  welfare,  or  for  the  relief  and  well 
doing  of  others,  cannot  be  answered,  because  there  is  no 
personal  God  to  whom  we  may  address  our  appeals.  Were 
there  such  a  God,  our  prayers  would  not  be  necessary.  A 
good,  just,  merciful  personal  God  would  not  allow  His 
children  to  suffer,  or  require  His  protection.  It  would  not 
be  possible  for  a  personal  God,  capable  of  creating  the  uni- 
verse, and  a  world  like  ours,  to  be  blind  and  deaf  to  the 
appeals  of  a  suffering  people.  We  are  told  to  ask  and  we 
shall  receive.  That  is  not  comforting  advice  when  a  world 
is  deluged  with  blood,  and  there  are  broken  hearts  and  sor- 
row in  almost  every  household.  A  merciful  personal  God, 
such  as  we  read  about  in  the  bible  and  other  religious  litera- 
ture, would  not  wait  until  the  house  burned  down  before  He 
began  to  shower  water  to  quench  the  fire. 

It  should  not  be  discouraging  to  learn  that  our  prayers 
for  the  welfare  of  others  are  not  heard  and  answered. 
Public  prayerful  entreaties  for  the  benefit  of  our  fellow 
kind  arouse  human  sympathy  and  support  for  them,  and  in 
that  way  bring  to  them  needed  relief.  Supplications  for 
the  welfare  of  loved  ones,  when  we  know  of  their  being 
offered,  increase  our  affection  for  them  and  incite  us  to 


140      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

respond  to  loving  efforts  to  aid  them.  Prayerful  supplica- 
tions for  any  good  purpose  create  and  increase  desires  in 
the  mind  of  the  supplicant  for  well  doing,  and  in  that  way 
are  effective.  Were  we  not  so  confiding,  sympathetic  and 
hopeful,  our  confidence  in  God's  power  to  assist  us  would 
have  long  since  have  been  shaken.  Think  of  the  countless, 
limitless  numbers  of  prayers  each  hour  and  day  that  are 
speeded  heavenward  for  relief  from  our  numerous  troubles. 
Not  one  of  them  is  answered  by  either  the  personal  God 
or  the  great  Redeemer.  Ask  your  own  mentality  for  reliable 
proof  of  such  divine  succor.  There  may  have  been  an 
occasional  coincidence,  but  there  is  no  valid  proof  of  the 
relief  by  divine  assistance. 

There  have  been  instances  when  people  prayed  for  ma- 
terial benefits  and  apparently  had  their  prayers  answered. 
But  the  benefits  were  not  bestowed  either  by  divine  influence 
or  by  direct  command  or  inspiration.  The  prayerful  appeals 
aroused  the  mental  activities  of  the  supplicants,  and  caused 
them  to  put  forth  vigorous  personal  efforts  to  secure  the 
object  of  their  desires.  Prayers  arouse  mental  efforts  and 
assist  us  in  gaining  strength  and  opportunity  for  the  accom- 
plishment of  laudable  undertakings. 

Prayers  for  public  relief  or  material  welfare  could  not 
be  directly  effective,  because  the  relief  or  welfare  must 
result  from  human  efforts.  We  cannot  pray  a  house  into 
existence,  or  a  loaf  of  bread  into  an  oven.  We  cannot  pray 
life  into  a  dying  friend,  or  stop  a  river  from  overflowing 
its  banks.  God  does  not  voluntarily  do  these  things,  and 
we  must  not  expect  our  prayers  to  act  as  a  command.  We 
may  by  individual  endeavor  speed  up  nature's  methods,  in 
such  fields  of  activity  as  we  control,  and  improve  her 
products  to  a  remarkable  extent.  But  we  cannot  change 
the  coming  of  the  seasons,  or  alter  the  furies  or  tranquilities 
of  the  elements.  We  could  not  stop  the  earth  from  travers- 
ing space,  or  prevent  the  stars  from  twinkling,  by  prayer. 
It  would  be  as  easy  to  do  these  things  by  praying  for  them 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  141 

as  it  would  be  to  increase  the  physical  comforts  of  a  fellow 
being  by  prayer  alone. 

Prayer  has  been  the  lever  that  has  uplifted  mankind 
from  a  brutish  gtate  to  our  present  intellectual  condition, 
but  this  great  moral  development  was  accomplished  by 
mental,  individual  efforts,  incited  by  prayer.  Church 
prayers,  ceremonies,  rituals  and  associations  have  done  much 
to  promote  this  moral  and  mental  human  welfare,  but  their 
assistance  was  derived  by  inspiring  man  to  pray  for  him- 
self, and  not  by  any  direct  control  of  God*s  influence. 

God  does  not  create  church  organizations,  or  influence 
or  govern  them  in  any  way.  Were  that  not  so,  there  would 
be  only  one  church  and  one  form  of  worship,  and  that 
would  be  God's  church  and  God's  method  of  worship.  It 
must  be  apparent  to  people  who  give  the  question  careful 
thought,  that  the  only  requirement  essential  to  salvation  is 
a  mentality  that  will  not  prompt  wrong  doing.  Wickedness, 
in  any  form,  is  a  destructive  agent.  It  either  works  havoc 
to  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  others,  or  impairs  the 
mental  and  physical  health  of  the  wrong-doing  person. 
We  are  told  that  to  be  saved,  and  rewarded  with  eternal 
life,  we  must  become  worthy.  There  is  no  way  to  render 
us  worthy  except  by  regenerating  our  mentalities.  Nothing 
else  causes  us  to  do  wrong.  The  mentality  influences  our 
thoughts  and  deeds  for  wrong  doing.  There  is  no  other 
cause.  We  could  not  steal  a  coin  or  take  a  drink  without 
mental  effort.  If  we  are  to  be  reformed  it  must  be  by 
changing  our  mental  control.  If  the  mentality  has  been  in- 
fluencing us  to  do  wrong,  we  must  seek  another  and  better 
influence.  Prayer  will  upbuild  that  influence  and  change 
our  mental  control.  It  can  be  done  in  no  other  way  than 
by  individual  mental  effort.  We  must  pray  for  our  own 
welfare.  Regeneration  may  only  be  accomplished  by  the 
development  of  a  more  desirable  brain  cellular  control. 


142  FOR.  THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER  THIRTY-ONE 

THAT  THERE  ARE  SEVERAL  VERY  GOOD  REASONS  WHY  MODERN 

PEOPLE  DO  NOT  BECOME  ENTHUSIASTIC  CONVERTS  TO  THE 

CHRISTIAN    AND    OTHER    RELIGIOUS    ORGANIZATIONS 

THERE  is  no  actual  knowledge  of  the  existence  of  a 
personal  God,  such  as  many  people  worship,  although 
there  could  be  no  possible  denial  of  the  wonderful 
creations  of  a  Supreme  Deity.  We  are  each  and  all  of  us 
evidences  of  His  handiwork,  and  our  earthly  possessions, 
including  this  world,  are  the  results  of  His  beneficence.  It 
is  not  the  doubt  of  a  Divine  Influence,  or  Creator,  that 
causes  many  persons  to  be  skeptical  and  lose  faith  in  the 
present  religious  beliefs.  It  is  the  lack  of  information  con- 
cerning the  existence  of  a  personal  God,  and  the  positive 
knowledge  that  we  are  not  guided,  controlled,  and  made 
happy  and  contented  through  the  medium  of  His  influence, 
that  creates  unbelievers. 

The  proof  of  the  cause  of  this  growing  unbelief  may  be 
found  in  the  history  of  church  organizations,  and  in  their 
present  dissensions,  differences  and  lack  of  cohesion  in 
spreading  their  doctrines  for  universal  welfare.  Each  and 
every  one  of  the  great  religious  organizations  owes  its  ex- 
istence to  an  early  career  of  violence  and  bloodshed.  They 
became  wealthy,  powerful  and  influential  through  years  of 
warfare  and  countless  deeds  of  rapine,  ruin,  lust,  slaughter, 
slander,  death  and  destruction.  In  this  day,  church  organi- 
zations are  fighting  each  other  by  peaceful  methods.  Money 
is  used  instead  of  weapons,  to  carry  on  the  work  of  pros- 
elytism.  The  christian  churches  are  sending  missionaries 
to  China,  India  and  other  oriental  countries  to  convert 
mohammedans,  brahmists,  buddhists,  confucianists,  shinto- 
ists  and  other  oriental  religionists.  These  people  are  desig- 
nated as  infidels  by  followers  of  the  christian  faith,  and 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  143 

for  that  reason  are  not  to  be  permitted  to  seek  salyation 
in  their  own  way. 

There  are  also  dissensions  among  the  christian  church 
organizations,  and  a  number  of  them  do  not  recognize  each 
other  as  true  worshippers  of  Christ.  All  of  the  various 
organizations  employ  different  rituals,  forms  of  ceremony 
and  articles  of  faith,  although  each  of  them  accepts  Christ, 
the  Son  of  God,  as  the  Redeemer,  to  whom  their  prayerful 
supplications  should  be  addressed.  It  is  not  difficult  for  an 
applicant  for  church  membership  to  find  an  open  door  in  a 
christian  church,  but  it  would  not  be  an  easy  matter  for 
him  to  secure  admission  into  some  of  the  churches,  were 
he  a  vagabond  and  really  needed  reformation. 

Church  dissensions  and  differences  do  not  represent  the 
most  important  reason  why  there  are  so  many  unbelievers 
and  backsliders  among  the  world's  vast  population.  There 
are  enough  various  religious  beliefs  to  satisfy  the  demands 
of  any  person,  regardless  of  nationality  or  grade  of  intel- 
lectual development.  There  is  a  religion  for  everybody, 
from  the  idol  worshipper  up  to  the  latest  type  of  money 
idolator.  But  the  person  who  cannot  be  caught  in  the  net- 
work of  world-wide  religion,  notwithstanding  the  most 
strenuous  efforts,  is  the  red-blooded  man  or  woman  who 
exists  on  exhilerative  pleasure.  These  peculiar  people  enjoy 
a  good  time,  where  their  desires,  appetites  and  animal  pro- 
pensities may  be  gratified,  and  their  pleasures  may  be  al- 
lowed to  run  to  the  limit.  They  are  usually  vigorous  in 
health  and  physical  activity,  and  they  delight  in  every  sensa- 
tion and  emotion  that  speeds  up  the  red  blood  in  their  veins, 
and  causes  it  to  thrill  them  with  an  undefinable  exultation. 
To  such  people. God  is  almost  too  infinitesimal  to  attract 
attention.  They  do  not  usually  think  of  Him,  until  lustful 
and  other  desires  have  sapped  their  energies,  ruined  their 
health,  and  practically  turned  the  red  blood  into  water. 
Then  their  plaints  go  forth  for  salvation. 

The  conversion  of  man  from  an  animal  to  a  true  type 


144      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

of  manhood  has  been  slow  and  difficult.  Had  the  effort  been 
controlled  by  supernatural  power,  it  possibly  might  have 
been  more  successful,  but  it  was  projected,  guided  and  con- 
trolled by  man-power,  by  man's  upgrowing  mentality,  and 
in  no  other  way.  There  would  have  been  no  religious  wars, 
no  dissensions  and  differences  in  religious  beliefs,  no  back- 
sliders, unbelievers  and  unworthy  people,  had  the  develop- 
ment of  man  been  controlled  by  divine  influence.  The  very 
fact  that  man  pictures  God  as  an  image  of  himself,  and  as 
a  ruler  seated  on  a  heavenly  throne,  sorting  out  the  good 
from  the  bad,  should  be  convincing  evidence  that  man  is 
mistaken,  and  that  the  churches  are  wrong  in  supporting 
such  a  ridiculous  interpretation  of  a  Great  Creator's  duties. 
Church  preaching,  teaching  and  other  methods  of  inculcat- 
ing religious  doctrines  and  thought  need  as  much  reforma- 
tion as  do  the  people  whom  religious  organizations  are  try- 
ing to  proselytize.  Men  and  women,  as  a  rule,  need  and  are 
anxious  for  salvation,  but  they  also  want  to  see  fact,  and 
satisfactory  results.  A  convert  cannot  be  purchased  by  an 
alleged  promise  of  heavenly  grace,  any  quicker  than  a  piece 
of  property  could  be  sold  to  him  without  giving  him  a  title. 
The  older  the  world  grows  and  the  more  mankind  becomes 
experienced,  the  greater  is  the  need  of  fact,  reliable  infor- 
mation, and  sound  argument  in  religious,  as  well  as  in  bus- 
iness activitites.  Some  people  believe  in  praying  before  the 
pictures  of  saints  for  certain  earthly  rewards;  others  look 
upon  such  a  practice  as  image  worship.  Other  people  expect 
God  to  look  down  on  them  and  smile,  whenever  they  throw  a 
penny  into  a  blind  beggar's  cup.  Charitable  people  help  the 
unfortunate  and  feel  happier  for  having  done  so.  It's  the 
way  we  look  at  things  that  makes  the  difference.  Wor- 
shipping God,  saints,  or  idols  will  not  bring  earthly  reward. 
When  we  pray  for  strength  to  do  right,  to  think  right  and 
to  see  right,  we  will  be  benefited,  because  a  desire  for  right 
doing  will  be  developed  and  strengthened.  It's  the  way 
we  pray  that  causes  us  to  become  better  men  and  women. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  145 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER    THIRTY-TWO 

THAT   THE   USE   OF   GOOD     COMMON    SENSE   IS    ESSENTIAL   TO 
SUCCESS     IN     ALL     UNDERTAKINGS,     AND     AS      THAT 
ATTRIBUTE  IS  A   CREATION  OF   MENTAL  TRAIN- 
ING,    STRENUOUS    EFFORTS    SHOULD    BE 
MADE  TO  SECURE  ITS  DEVELOPMENT 

AN  ability  to  make  use  of  good  common  sense  is 
invaluable,  when  its  worth  is  considered  as  a  means 
of  promoting  personal  and  public  welfare.  The  story 
of  what  man  might  do  successfully  were  his  activities  con- 
trolled by  common  sense,  would  fill  many  books  with  in- 
teresting reading.  What  he  could  not  accomplish  without 
the  aid  of  common  sense,  would  keep  all  of  the  printing 
presses  of  the  country  busy,  were  the  information  pub- 
lished. It  is  a  waste  of  time  to  discuss  what  may  be  done 
through  the  use  of  common  sense.  We  all  feel  the  need 
of  it,  but  most  of  us  find  that  the  fount  that  supplies  it, 
the  mentality,  has  run  dry  whenever  a  demand  is  made 
for  its  use. 

Common  sense,  or  the  mental  influence  that  causes  us 
to  exercise  good  judgment,  is  a  product  of  mental  training. 
It  is  within  the  reach  of  all  who  seek  it  diligently,  and  who 
are  willing  to  practice  self-denial  until  its  development  is 
assured.  Lavish,  extravagant  methods  of  living,  high-toned 
ambitions  for  social  honors,  and  showy  garments  should  be 
tabooed  when  learning  the  use  of  common  sense.  It  is  al- 
ways advisable  to  associate  with  reputable  people,  and 
to  dress  neatly,  and  stylishly,  when  an  income  will  warrant 
it.  Common  sense  approves  of  such  methods.  But  when  it 
comes  to  squandering  the  products  of  gold  mines,  oil  wells 
and  other  big  income-producers  for  the  sake  of  gilding 
over  an  unsavory  reputation,  common  sense  will  instantly 
rebel.    Common  sense  is  a  good,  square  fighter.   It  abhors 


146      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

aristocracy  and  frowns  at  snobbishness  and  people  who 
sneer  at  the  lower  classes.  Common  sense  prompts  good 
judgment  in  causing  everything  in  existence  to  thrive  and 
create  prosperity.  It  fills  our  pockets  with  money,  our 
fields  and  storehouses  with  plenty,  our  mills  and  factories 
with  orders  and  busy  working  people,  our  stores  and  busi- 
ness houses  with  customers,  our  homes  with  happy  families, 
and  everything  else  with  the  comforts  and  joys  of  the  full- 
ness of  life,  except  our  jails  and  courts  of  justice.  One 
oimce  of  common  sense  is  worth  more  to  humanity  than  all 
of  the  world's  treasures. 

Common  sense  is  a  mental  attribute,  and  must  be  ac- 
quired by  the  same  means  employed  to  upbuild  right  doing. 
The  task  will  prove  to  be  strenuous  and  wearisome,  and 
common  sense  must  be  used  to  fix  itself  in  a  mentality. 
The  process  of  acquiring  common  sense  and  other  worthy 
attainments  has  been  described,  several  times,  in  this 
volume.  Vigorous  mental  effort  must  be  used  to  put  down 
and  overcome  influences  that  prevent  common  sense  from 
asserting  itself  as  a  dominating  mental  factor.  That  effort 
means  the  development  of  brain  cells  to  control  the  men- 
tality for  right  doing.  The  use  of  common  sense  is  noth- 
ing more  or  less  than  right  doing.  If  good  judgment  is 
used  in  all  of  our  activities,  that  is  common  sense,  doing 
right.  Prayers  for  right  doing  create  and  strengthen  a 
desire  to  do  right.  They  develop  brain  cells  for  that  pur- 
pose. They  establish  and  keep  active  mental  control  for 
right  doing,  and  by  means  of  that  control  we  are  enabled 
to  use  common  sense. 

Through  the  use  of  common  sense,  we  shall  be  able  to 
discriminate  between  the  good  and  bad  methods  of  religious 
conversion.  That  means  much  to  those  who  look  with  hope 
ful  eyes  toward  immortality.  We  are  told  that  none  but 
the  worthy  will  be  exalted.  Common  sense  approves  that 
assertion.  Fitness  for  immortality  should  govern  the  selec- 
tion. But  what  condition  will  be  considered  worthy?   Shall 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  147 

the  candidates  be  rendered  fit  by  religious  ceremonies  and 
church  membership,  or  shall  it  be  from  mental  purity?  If 
by  church  membership,  to  what  religion  and  church  must 
they  belong?  Common  sense  would  decide  against  church 
membership  and  ceremony.  It  would  be  impossible  to 
whitewash  sin  and  cause  it  to  pass  eternal  judgment.  It 
also  would  be  an  injustice  to  select  one  church  and  religion 
from  many  similar  organizations  and  give  it  the  keys  to 
heaven.  Mental  purity,  a  mentality  controlled  by  cellular 
influence  for  right  doing,  must  render  us  worthy  of  im- 
mortality. Common  sense  so  decides.  Also,  that  man  must 
fit  himself  for  the  final  judgment  by  his  own  individual 
mental  efforts. 


148  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  THIRTY-THREE 

THAT    MAN    SPENDS    TOO    MUCH    OF    HIS    TIME    IN    WASTING 

MENTAL   EFFORT   IN   FREAKS   OF   IMAGINATION,   OR  WHEN 

INDULGING  HABITS  THAT  RESULT  IN   MENTAL  INJURY 

WE  worry  about  fancied  troubles,  or  about  contin- 
gencies that  may  never  occur.  It  is  bad  enough  to 
be  compelled  to  face  real  difficulties  or  dangers 
when  they  come,  and  for  that  reason  we  should  preserve 
our  mental  poise  and  strength  until  our  efforts  are  needed. 
Borrowing  trouble  is  like  dealing  with  a  pawn  shop.  The 
more  trouble  we  borrow  the  less  ability  we  will  have  to 
meet  emergencies.  Many  people  have  died  from  the  habit 
of  borrowing  trouble,  and  in  most  cases  their  friends  have 
had  to  pay  the  undertaker.  Borrowing  trouble  is  a  habit 
acquired  through  that  freak  of  mental  wandering,  the  im- 
agination. Death  would  be  a  welcome  relief  to  the  hypo- 
chondriac who  is  always  about  to  die  from  fancied  disease. 
The  man  who  is  in  debt  will  not  pay  his  creditor  by  worry- 
ing about  it.  The  manager  of  a  business  enterprise  that 
is  losing  money  will  not  devise  means  to  stop  the  loss  by 
wringing  his  hands,  in  a  state  of  frenzy.  The  girl  who 
has  had  a  tiff  with  her  lover  will  not  win  him  back  by 
crying  her  eyes  out  in  hopeless  despair.  There  is  always 
hope  to  buoy  up  our  energies,  and  incite  us  to  greater 
efforts  in  times  of  distress,  if  we  do  not  frustrate  it  by 
worry.  Ninety  times  out  of  a  hundred  we  worry  about 
nothing.  Our  troubles  are  fancied,  but  the  injurious  effect 
on  our  mentalities  is  real.  Brain  cells  are  not  steel  or 
adamant.  Too  much  and  too  constant  activity  in  fretting 
over  trouble,  fancied  or  real,  is  like  playing  a  fiddle  on  one 
string.  The  nerve  or  brain  cells  actuated  by  worry  will  be- 
come uncontrollable.  That  means  either  a  nervous  break- 
down, or  a  sanitorium  for  the  half  crazed  person. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  149 

The  remedy  for  worry,  or  any  other  bad  habit  that  has 
become  fixed  and  seemingly  implacable,  is  a  change  of 
mental  control.  The  worry  habit,  and  other  injurious  in- 
fluences, are  mental  developments,  brain  cellular  creations. 
They  are  mental  activities  caused  by  a  partial  loss  of  mental 
self-control.  They  are  a  mild  form  of  mental  break- 
down, which  may  result  in  something  more  serious.  In- 
sanity results  from  a  total  loss  of  mental  self-control. 
When  bad  habits  control  our  thoughts  and  mental  and  phy- 
sical activities,  we  are  bordering  on  the  verge  of  madness. 
There  is  only  one  cure  for  such  a  condition,  and  that  is  the 
development  and  upbuilding  of  a  control  to  supplant  the 
activities  that  cause  our  mental  distress.  The  surest  and 
most  speedy  way  of  changing  an  objectionable  mental  con- 
trol, is  to  go  down  on  our  knees  and  pray  for  it.  Changing 
thought  and  impulse  means  mental  regeneration.  Prayer 
for  that  purpose  is  the  best  panacea. 

Going  down  on  our  knees  to  pray  for  mental  strength  to 
overcome  bad  habits,  or  influences  that  cause  wrong  doing, 
may  seem  unnecessary  to  some  people.  It  would  not  be 
essential,  could  we  submit  ourselves,  body  and  soul,  to  the 
prayerful  effort.  Under  ordinary  circumstances  that  can- 
not be  done.  The  fact  that  we  kneel  in  submission  has  its 
influence  in  causing  our  supplications  to  be  earnest  and 
sincere.  We  do  not,  or  should  not,  pray  for  the  purpose  of 
uttering  words.  Such  a  prayer  would  be  no  better  than 
singing  a  song.  We  pray  to  create  and  stimulate  a  desire 
for  right  doing.  We  pray  to  upbuild  a  mental  control  to 
cause  us  to  think  differently,  act  differently  and  become 
good,  sane,  right-doing  people.  Unless  better  and  more 
desirable  brain  or  nerve  cells  are  developed  by  our  prayer- 
ful efforts,  there  will  be  no  change  in  the  mental  control 
that  causes  worry,  bad  habits  and  other  wrong  doing.  Sing- 
ing, reading  prayers,  or  mumbling  words  are  not  rapid 
and  effective  methods  of  brain  cellular  development.  There 
must  be  energy,  earnestness,  devoutness  and  sincerity  in 


150      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

our  prayers  for  strength  to  overcome  our  troubles.  We 
must  give  the  prayer  all  the  mental  strength  we  can  muster, 
if  we  expect  it  to  be  efficacious.  It  is  a  question  of  mental 
effort  for  mental  upbuilding.  That  means  brain  cellular 
development  to  acquire  a  sane,  mental  control.  Insipid, 
half-hearted  prayers  will  not  accomplish  that  purpose. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  161 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  THIRTY-FOUR 

THAT    INDIVIDUAL    EFFORT    IS    NEEDED   TO    FREE    THE    WORLD 
FROM   ITS    MISERY  AND  DISTRESS.     NO  MONEY,   NO  UNIVER- 
SAL   CAMPAIGN    IS    NECESSARY    TO    BRING    ABOUT    THAT 
GREAT     REFORM.       IT     MAY     BE     ACCOMPLISHED     BY 
INDIVIDUAL     SELF-REGENERATION 

TAKE  a  community  as  an  example,  and  cause  each 
member  of  it  to  cultivate  a  desire  for  right  doing, 
and  to  abandon  habits  and  inclinations  that  are  in- 
jurious to  self  and  detrimental  to  the  welfare  of  the  com- 
munity. Could  there  be  such  a  thing  as  poverty  and  suffer- 
ing, where  every  person  is  trying  to  do  right  and  conditions 
are  normal?  Greed,  misdirected  ambitions,  bad  habits,  ig- 
norance, desire  for  wrong  doing,  and  mental  dullness  are 
the  cause  of  our  worldly  troubles.  Individual  effort,  rightly 
directed,  would  quickly  overcome  these  mental  afflictions, 
and  upbuild  happiness  and  contentment.  We  should  not 
forget  that  all  right  and  wrong  doing  results  from  mental 
conditions.  Right  doing  will  emanate  from  a  mentality 
controlled  by  good  influences,  and  wrong  doing  is  the 
creature  of  a  mentality  under  evil  control.  The  mentality 
is  the  source  of  all  thought  impulses,  acts  and  deeds,  good 
or  bad.  We  will  not  do  wrong  if  our  mentalities  are  domi- 
nated by  a  desire  to  do  right. 

Most  people  think  that  it  is  the  other  fellow  who  needs 
reformation.  They  never  read  their  own  records  until, 
during  an  illness,  they  begin  to  be  anxious  about  what 
might  happen.  When  the  doctor  has  assured  them  that  they 
will  not  die,  this  time,  the  worry  is  over.  A  return  to  health 
and  vigor  enables  them  to  start  out  again  in  worldly  activ- 
ities, and  they  soon  lose  sight  of  the  devil  and  his  satellites, 
who  stared  them  in  the  face  while  they  were  under  the 
doctor's   care.     It   would   make   a   great   difference   with 


152      FOR    THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

humanity  if  every  person  would  try  to  first  reform  himself, 
before  devoting  his  time  to  the  welfare  of  others.  Self- 
regeneration,  rendered  effective  universally,  would  clean 
up  every  slum,  every  nest  of  ignorance  and  vice,  and  every 
evidence  of  war  and  conquest  now  in  existence.  Think  what 
a  wonderful  change  self-reformation   could  create. 

The  world  would  always  be  beaming  with  mental  sun- 
shine, no  matter  how  many  storms  the  elements  might  be- 
stow. There  would  be  no  bankruptcies,  no  need  for  credits 
and  no  attempts  to  defraud.  The  money  now  spent  in  vice 
and  follies,  or  to  gratify  pampered  desires,  would  be  used  for 
sensible,  beneficial  purposes.  Our  schools  would  be  over- 
flowing with  scholars  eager  for  learning,  and  fond  parents 
would  long  for  more  children  to  enjoy  the  world's  abun- 
dance. There  would  be  no  more  family  quarrels,  no  more 
feuds  or  unjust  conditions  that  cost  human  Hfe.  Our  in- 
sane asylums,  and  others  for  the  poor  and  homeless,  would 
be  put  out  of  business,  and  there  would  be  no  dependents 
except  those  poor  in  health  or  otherwise  rendered  helpless 
by  physical  infirmities.  Even  our  death  reports  would  cease 
to  worry  us,  for  right  living,  right  thinking  and  right  doing 
would  cut  down  the  sick  list,  and  greatly  prolong  life. 

If  readers  could  realize  what  great  benefits  might  be 
derived  from  universal  self-regeneration,  they  would  or- 
ganize clubs  and  advocate  it  in  every  community  where  its 
principles  could  be  understood.  Self -regeneration  means 
the  attainment  of  a  sane  mental  control.  It  costs  nothing 
but  mental  effort,  and  is  the  quickest  method  of  acquiring 
health,  comfort,  peace  of  mind,  and  happiness  that  rests 
within  the  ability  of  mankind.  Self-control  nearly  all  per- 
sons claim  to  possess,  but  a  history  of  their  deeds  and  mis- 
deeds would  convince  them  to  the  contrary.  Self-regenera- 
tion, when  realized,  would  cut  out  the  mistakes  of  Hfe  for 
which  the  individual  was  personally  responsible,  and  cause 
him  to  be  a  clean,  reputable  citizen.  Self-regeneration  may 
be  accomplished  when  the  person  has  fitted  himself  for  right 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  153 

doing.  Try  the  method  explained  in  this  volume.  It  will 
bring,  if  persisted  in,  all  the  comforts,  joy  and  blessings 
that  a  sane  vigorous  mentality  is  capable  of  bestowing. 


154  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  THIRTY-FIVE 

THAT  THE  USE  OF  THE  DIVINE  MIND  IN  CHRISTIAN   SCIENCE 
HEALING  IS  A  DELUSION.     SUCH   AN  INFLUENCE  PURPORT- 
ING TO  COME  FROM  GOD    HAS  NO  EXISTENCE.     THERE  IS 
NOT  NOW,  AND  NEVER  HAS  BEEN,  A  DIVINE  MIND  SUB- 
JECT   TO    THE   DEMANDS    AND    USES    OF    HUMANITY 

THERE  is  not  now  and  never  has  been,  nor  could  there 
possibly  be,  such  a  thing  as  the  divine  mind  designated 
and  advocated  by  Mrs.  Eddy  and  christian  science 
healers.  Could  the  divine  mind  be  in  existence,  it  would  not 
be  especially  devoted  to  science  heaUng,  and  remain  under 
the  control  of  licensed  healers.  Our  definition  of  the  term 
mind  is  that  it  is  a  human,  rational  faculty,  or  understand- 
ing, or  intellect.  God,  the  Creator,  may  have  a  mind  fash- 
ioned and  used  according  to  Mrs.  Eddy's  ideas,  but  no 
human  being  has  ever  solved  that  mystery.  God's  presence 
and  existence  may  only  be  known  by  His  creations.  He 
has  never  healed  the  sick,  or  bound  up  the  wounds  of  in- 
jured mortals.  He  has  never  rescued  the  fallen,  or  brought 
relief  to  the  hearts  of  the  afflicted.  God,  the  Creator,  is 
everywhere  in  the  vast  and  measureless  universe,  and  His 
work  may  be  seen,  admired  and  enjoyed  in  every  living 
and  inert  earthly  creation.  But  we  know  nothing  of  a 
personal  God,  or  the  divine  mind,  or  its  miraculous  heaUng 
power. 

When  considering  the  abiUty  of  God  to  heal  the  sick,  or 
to  alleviate  afflictions  of  any  kind,  or  to  banish  sin,  suffer- 
ing and  sorrow,  we  should  remember  that  He  would  not 
pass  one  sufferer  by  to  heal  another  at  the  request,  or 
prayerful  demand,  of  any  mortal.  Christian  science  heal- 
ers claim  that  they  heal  disease  by  absent  treatment  in  the 
same  manner  Christ  healed  the  centurion's  servant,  when 
not  present  with  the  patient.    Christ  may  have  done  what 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  166 

God  absolutely  does  not  do,  but  it  docs  not  follow  that 
christian  science  healers  possess  the  wonderful  power  with 
which  Christ  was  endowed.  Of  one  thing  we  may  be  sure, 
Christ  did  not  charge  a  fee  for  his  healing. 

There  is  no  secret  or  unknown  principle  employed  in 
christian  science  healing.  Nature,  stimulated  by  the  mental 
efforts  of  the  patient  and  assisted  by  the  encouraging  advice 
of  the  healer,  does  more  to  bring  about  a  restoration  to 
health  than  medicine  could  do  in  some  kinds  of  afflictions. 
Remember  that  the  mentality  or  mind  is  the  seat  of  all  of 
our  troubles.  Good  health  depends  largely  upon  proper 
and  effective  mental  activity.  Faith  in  a  treatment,  and 
confidence  in  our  own  ability  to  overcome  an  affliction, 
will  in  many  cases  accomplish  a  successful  result.  Science 
healers  invariably  endeavor  to  inspire  that  confidence  in 
their  methods  of  treating  patients.  Also  the  thought  that 
there  is  no  such  a  thing  as  disease  will  do  much  towards 
relieving  the  mind  of  its  burden  of  anticipation  of  greater 
trouble.  That  is  as  far  as  christian  science  goes  toward 
healing  disease.  The  divine  mind  treatment  is  a  delusion, 
purposely  intended  to  create  a  favorable  impression  con- 
cerning this  apparently  new  mental  science.  God  has  noth- 
ing to  do  with  it  or  its  method  of  healing.  He  could  not 
and  would  not  endorse  the  advertising  and  use  of  His  name 
and  mind  for  money-making  purposes.  If  God  were  guiding 
and  controlling  human  affairs,  especially  those  of  the  af- 
flicted, they  would  be  under  better  management. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  christian  science  is  nothing  but  a 
theory.  The  divine  mind  has  no  existence.  The  argument 
that  disease  and  sin  are  mental  impressions  is  ambiguous 
and  faulty.  Take  a  mind  that  is  weakened  by  excesses  and 
harmful  indulgences.  The  weakness  is  not  a  mental  im- 
pression. Let  murder  be  committed.  Is  the  murderer  sinful, 
or  is  the  deed  a  mental  impression?  The  argument  used 
by  scientists  that  the  divine  mind  corrects  mental  impres- 
sion, and  heals  sin  and  disease,  is  erroneous  and  misleading. 


156      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

Christian  science  cannot  restore  life,  or  heal  cellular  and 
physical  organs  that  have  lost  their  power  to  function. 
Christian  science  cannot  reform  a  criminal  mentality,  or 
reclaim  a  drunkard  without  depriving  him  of  Uquor.  Chris- 
tian science  cannot  remove  and  heal  cancerous  or  tubercular 
afflictions,  or  cure  any  disease  that  nature  would  not  control 
were  it  given  opportunity  and  time  to  do  so.  Christian 
science  will  not  restore  sight,  or  cause  the  deaf  to  hear.  It 
will  not  remove  deformities  and  make  them  sightly.  It 
will  not  lessen  pain,  or  cure  chronic  rheumatism.  It  will 
not  heal  brain  lesions  and  restore  paralytics  to  activity.  It 
will  not  even  cure  a  corn  or  an  ingrowing  nail  by  mental 
treatment.  Then  what  is  christian  science  good  for?  To 
delude  some  people  into  thinking  that  it  is  an  easy  stepping- 
stone  to  heaven,  and  also  a  saving  in  doctor's  bills. 

The  reason  why  christian  science  cannot  heal  disease 
is  because  it  is  impossible  for  it  to  reach  the  mentality  of 
the  patient  except  by  means  of  the  five  senses.  What  God 
does  not  and  will  not  do,  man,  with  his  limited  ability,  must 
not  expect  to  accomplish.  The  only  way  for  christian 
science  to  treat  a  man  for  healing  purposes  is  through  the 
senses  of  touch,  taste,  sight,  smell  and  hearing.  That  fact 
has  been  fully  explained  in  this  volume,  but  to  still  further 
impress  its  truthfulness  on  the  minds  of  readers  let  them 
try  an  experiment.  Shutting  one's  self  up  in  a  dark  room 
free  from  noise,  or  outside  interferences  is  not  a  pleasant 
experience,  but  it  will  convince  any  person  that  no  influence, 
christian  science,  supernatural,  or  otherwise,  can  disturb  or 
control  the  thought  or  physical  activities  of  the  prisoner. 
The  divine  mind  will  prove  to  be  a  fallacy  after  careful, 
thoughtful  investigation.  Science  healing  by  extraneous  in- 
fluence is  a  deception,  and  every  other  claim  for  outside 
mental  control  is  sheer  and  unqualified  nonsense.  There 
is  this  one  commendable,  redeeming  quality  about  christian 
science.  It  advocates  clean  living,  temperate  habits,  good, 
worthy  citizenship  and  progressive  and  enlightened  condi- 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  157 

tions.  Qiristian  science  has  no  direct  healing  power,  and 
the  good  it  accompHshes  through  alleged  healing  results 
from  the  influence  for  self-healing  it  exerts  on  the  patient. 
Also,  there  is  more  or  less  curative  influence  in  the  thought 
of  the  patient  that  he  is  being  restored  to  health  by  a 
power  that  purports  to  come  from  God,  or  the  alleged 
divine  mind.  Every  patient  is  told  that  Christ  exercised 
that  same  power  or  influence,  when  performing  the  scrip- 
tural miracles. 

Note  the  helplessness  of  a  deaf,  dumb  and  blind  person 
to  communicate  with  his  fellows  except  by  means  of  the 
sense  of  touch  or  feeling.  The  organs  and  sensory  nerves 
that  control  the  ability  to  hear,  speak  and  see  are  useless 
and  cannot  be  made  to  arouse  mental  activities,  and  in  con- 
sequence the  person  is  deprived  of  every  method  of  com- 
municating, or  of  receiving  communications  from  outside 
sources,  unless  the  mental  activities  controlled  by  the  sense 
of  touch  or  feeling  are  called  into  use.  The  divine  mind, 
should  there  be  such  a  thing,  must  necessarilly  create  men- 
tal activity  in  the  mind  of  the  patient  before  healing  could 
be  accomplished.  The  only  way  that  activity  may  be  aroused 
is  by  the  use  of  the  five  senses.  It  is  absolutely  impossible 
to  reach  the  mentality  and  arouse  its  activities  extrane- 
ously  in  any  other  manner.  Were  a  deaf,  dumb  and  blind 
person  deprived  of  the  sense  of  touch  or  feeling  he  would 
be  dead  to  the  world,  so  far  as  mental  activity  awakened 
from  outside  sources  is  concerned.  It  would  not  be  possible 
to  communicate  with  him.  If  the  knowledge  of  that  fact 
does  not  convince  readers  that  christian  science  healing  by 
absent  or  other  treatment,  telepathy,  and  other  thought 
transference  processes  are  not  deceptions,  they  must  be  un- 
convincible,  and  incapable  of  being  satisfied  with  what  must 
be  acknowledged  as  irrefutable  proof. 


168  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   THIRTY-SIX 

THAT  MAN  SHOULD  LEARN  TO  DO  HIS  OWN  THINKING,  AND 

NOT    ALLOW    OTHERS    TO    CONTROL    AND    INFLUENCE    HIS 

CONDUCT,  FREQUENTLY  AGAINST  HIS  BEST  INTERESTS 

WHEN  the  fact  is  better  understood  that  every  indi- 
vidual, of  both  sexes,  is  an  independent  and  dis- 
tinct unit  in  human  life,  we  shall  learn  to  think  for 
ourselves,  instead  of  allowing  others  to  do  our  thinking. 
There  always  will  be  times  when  expert  advice  or  counsel 
is  needed,  but  on  general  propositions  concerning  personal 
affairs  we  should  learn  how  to  protect  ourselves  when 
dangers  threaten  our  welfare.  Self-reliance,  good  judg- 
ment and  an  ability  to  see  things  as  they  should  be  seen 
become  questions  of  habit.  When  we  cross  a  crowded 
street,  where  there  is  danger  of  being  run  down  and  crip- 
pled, or  killed,  we  are  self-reliant  and  watchful.  The  same 
watchful  care  to  protect  our  personal  interests  throughout 
life  should  also  be  exercised.  We  are  provided  with  men- 
talities for  that  purpose,  and  they  should  be  developed  and 
made  useful. 

It  is  a  law  of  nature  that  the  weak  must  succumb  to  the 
strong.  That  inevitable  result  may  only  be  avoided  by 
seeking  mental  strength  to  meet  emergencies.  Strong  minds 
provide  the  necessary  strength,  and  they  are  absolutely 
essential  to  success  in  life's  battles.  There  never  has  been 
the  time  when  brute  strength  finally  won  the  victory  over 
mental  force,  and  when  it  comes  to  a  contest  between  mind 
and  matter,  the  mind  invariably  becomes  the  master.  Weak 
minds  may  be  strengthened  and  made  more  serviceable,  but 
they  will  not  acquire  knowledge  except  by  study  and  strict 
application  of  studious  methods.  A  knife  may  be  sharpened 
and  made  ready  for  better  use,  but  it  cannot  be  serviceable 
unless  there  is  something  to  cut.  That  is  precisely  the  situ- 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  159 

ation  in  which  a  weak  mind  finds  itself  when  reinforced  by 
mental  vigor.  It  then  must  be  given  opportunity  to  acquire 
intellectual  strength. 

There  are  a  number  of  reasons  why  minds,  or  mentalities, 
are  weak,  but  usually  it  is  because  they  lack  driving  force  to 
impel  them  to  become  active  and  vigorous.  Oftentimes 
excesses  and  bad  habits  weaken  the  mind,  or  the  weakness 
may  have  been  inherited,  but  unless  the  cellular  develop- 
ment has  been  impaired,  or  disease  has  injured  the  brain 
organism,  there  is  a  way  to  invigorate  the  mentality  and 
cause  it  to  be  made  more  serviceable.  The  process  of  ac- 
quiring that  mental  vigor  is  the  same  employed  to  overcome 
bad  habits,  or  any  form  of  wrong  doing.  Right  doing  is 
the  synonym  of  mental  vigor.  To  do  right  lends  strength  to 
the  mind.  To  do  wrong  weakens  it.  The  way  to  strengthen 
a  mentality  and  give  it  mental  force  and  vigor  is  to  pray  for 
strength  to  do  right,  to  think  right,  and  to  live  right.  That 
is  equivalent  to  praying  for  mental  vigor. 

Prayer  is  a  mental  exercise.  It  creates  mental  activity 
for  right  doing  by  strengthening  and  upbuilding  a  desire 
to  do  right.  The  mentality  controls  our  physical  functions 
and  causes  us  to  do  either  right  or  wrong.  We  are  guided 
in  no  other  way.  There  is  no  supernatural  influence  to  con- 
trol our  thoughts,  acts  or  deeds.  We  are  actually,  entirely 
our  own  masters,  so  far  as  our  mental  activities  are  con- 
cerned. We  do  right  or  wrong  in  accordance  with  our 
brain  cellular  development.  When  controlled  by  desires  for 
wrong  doing,  the  only  way  to  learn  to  do  right  is  to  adopt 
the  prayer  method  of  developing  brain  cellular  strength 
to  upbuild  a  desire  for  right  doing.  In  due  time  that  desire 
will  dominate  the  mentality  and  cause  us  to  do  right.  Pray- 
ing to  do  right  is  a  system  of  mental  training  for  self-regen- 
eration. It  is  a  system  of  invigorating  the  mentality  and 
causing  it  to  inspire  thoughts  and  deeds  of  right  doing.  It 
is  the  quickest  and  surest  way  to  strengthen  a  weak  mind, 
and  cause  it  to  become  useful  to  its  possessor. 


160      FOR    THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

Too  much  stress  cannot  be  placed  on  the  importance  of 
prayer  as  a  mental  stimulus  for  right  doing.  It  does  not 
invoke  divine  protection  from  an  extraneous  source,  be- 
cause there  is  no  such  thing  for  humanity  during  mortal 
existence.  There  is  no  supernatural  power  that  guides, 
controls  and  protects  us.  Our  mentalities  cannot  be  in- 
spired by  divine,  or  other  outside  source,  or  influence.  We 
are  not  of  spiritual  existence,  but  are  animals  of  a  superior 
order,  or  species.  The  Creator  has  fixed  our  mental  and 
physical  status,  and  no  act  of  ours  can  change  it.  We  may 
yearn  for  a  spiritual  life  and  aspire  to  an  immortal  exis- 
tence, but  we  are  bound  by  earthly  ties  to  our  present  con- 
dition as  vertebrate  animals,  constituted  of  flesh,  blood, 
bone,  sinew  and  cellular  tissue.  Our  means  of  existence  is 
precisely  the  same  as  that  of  the  higher  types  of  animal 
life.  We  procreate,  are  given  birth,  and  during  life  are 
subject  to  the  different  changes  and  vicissitudes  incident 
to  other  animal  existence. 

Our  mental  training  is  the  only  means  we  have  of  acquir- 
ing information  and  knowledge,  and  everything  we  know 
or  possess  is  attained  by  mental  endeavor.  Nothing  comes 
to  us  unsought,  except  it  be  an  endowment,  a  gift,  or  a  pen- 
alty for  indiscretion.  We  owe  nothing  to  supernatural 
influence,  and  never  have  been  benefited  thereby.  We  have 
our  own  individual  lives  to  protect  and  control,  and  our  own 
salvation  to  accomplish.  That  must  be  done  through  the 
guidance  of  our  individual  mentaUties. 

Mental  training  to  us  is  like  a  compass  to  a  mariner.  We 
are  guided  by  the  nature  of  our  training.  If  our  mental 
control  is  wrong,  we  are  sure  to  do  wrong  unless  vigorous 
efforts  are  made  to  change  the  control  for  right  doing. 
That  is  the  object  of  prayer,  of  mental  exercise  to  prompt 
right  doing.  Prayer  develops  cellular  force  for  right  think- 
ing, right  living  and  right  doing.  Cellular  force  is  a  creation 
of  the  mentality,  and  results  from  the  development  of  brain 
and  nerve  cells.  The  nature  of  this  force  is  either  our  heaven 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  161 

or  our  hell  here  in  earthly  existence.  It  causes  us  to  be 
either  angels  or  demons  in  act  and  disposition,  and  no 
power  but  our  own  efforts  can  avail  to  rescue  us  from 
the  latter  condition.  Prayer  alone  is  the  agent  of  our  salva- 
tion, and  prayer  also  will  strengthen  our  mentalities,  and 
cause  them  to  become  more  useful.  At  the  beginning  of 
the  work  of  mental  regeneration  by  means  of  prayer,  it  will 
be  found  that  the  undes!  able  as  well  as  the  good  influences 
will  be  strengthened.  That  is  the  natural  result  of  any 
form  of  resuscitation.  But  the  mental  regeneration  will  be 
successfully  accomplished  if  the  prayers  for  right  doing 
are  continued.    There  could  be  no  other  result. 


162  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  THIRTY-SEVEN 

THAT    MAN    SHOULD    NOT    USE    HIS    MENTALITY    IN    SUCH    A 

WAY    AS    TO    CAUSE    HIM    TO    ACQUIRE   A    REPUTATION    FOR 

BEING    WHIMSICAL    OR    IMPRACTICAL,    NOR    EMPLOY    IT 

IN  DEVELOPING  A  USELESS,   IMAGINATIVE  DISPOSITION 

THE  mentality  or  mind  is  created  or  upbuilded  accord- 
ing to  its  various  uses.  Heretofore,  these  uses  have 
been  designated  as  mental  training,  which  really  is 
the  proper  expression.  An  idler  or  a  person  who  wastes  his 
life  may  possess  a  fully  developed  mentality,  but  it  is 
more  than  likely  that  he  lacks  mental  vigor,  owing  to  the 
faulty  manner  in  which  his  mentality  was  developed.  Idle- 
ness is  not  a  disease,  it  is  largely  a  habit.  Were  the  person 
who  is  controlled  by  a  desire  to  rest  continually  put  into 
a  treadmill  and  compelled  to  work  for  several  months,  he 
would  overcome  his  slothful  habit.  Gentlemen  of  leisure 
are  not  usually  born  idlers.  Had  these  men  been  reared 
in  poverty,  most  of  them  would  have  made  good  work 
hands,  or  toilers  at  an  occupation  that  compels  physical 
exertion.  It  is  often  a  great  misfortune  to  be  born  rich. 
What  might  have  been  good  mentalities,  properly  developed, 
have  been  misdirected  by  a  Ufe  of  idleness  and  pleasure. 

It  should  be  explained  that  a  mentality  does  not  develop 
itself.  Our  lives  are  not  forecast,  as  is  generally  believed. 
We  are  not  creatures  of  fate,  although  we  inherit  traits  of 
character  and  physical  form  handed  down  by  ancestors. 
We  also  inherit  our  brain  cell  organism,  replete  with  myri- 
ads of  cells,  but  these  cells  must  be  developed,  and  if  the 
possessor  allows  them  to  go  to  waste,  it  is  the  fault  of 
his  mental  training,  and  not  because  he  did  not  possess  the 
brain  cells,  fit  and  ready  for  use. 

Another  wasteful,  harmful  mental  habit  is  day  dreaming, 
using  the  mind  to  imagine  impossibilities.   The  imagination 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  168 

may  be  trained  by  mental  effort  to  a  wonderful  degree.  It 
requires  nothing  but  mental  effort  to  take  the  day  dreamer 
to  China  or  any  other  place  in  the  world.  Or  he  may  be 
enabled  to  penetrate  the  center  of  the  earth,  and  see  vast 
deposits  of  diamonds,  gold  or  other  precious  commodities. 
He  may  even  go  up  in  the  sky  and  sit  on  the  clouds,  or  do 
many  unreasonable  acts  while  day  dreaming.  But  what 
does  it  all  amount  to?  Day  dreams,  waste  of  mental  en- 
ergy, the  cultivation  of  a  harmful  habit.  That  is  the  result 
of  such  a  misuse  of  the  mentality.  Other  freaks  of  the 
imagination  are  still  more  injurious.  They  enter  into  the 
realm  of  personal  affairs.  The  imagination  may  see  a  dear 
friend  compromising  himself,  and  nurse  the  thought  until 
it  seems  a  reality,  or  it  may  fancy  that  there  is  a  ghost 
under  the  bed  and  cause  its  possessor  to  be  thrown  into  a 
spasm.  Or  spirits  may  come  to  dwell  continually  in  a  per- 
son's imagination,  or  he  may  see  burglars  and  other  un- 
realities by  constantly  day  dreaming,  and  wasting  mental 
effort. 

All  wastes  of  mental  effort  may  be  stopped  by  the  same 
endeavor  that  creates  them.  Use  of  the  mind  means  mental 
effort.  The  mentality,  or  mind,  may  be  employed  for  either 
good  or  bad  purposes.  When  used  to  develop  harmful 
habits  of  any  kind,  then  the  mental  effort  is  not  properly 
directed.  Learn  to  be  practical  in  thought  and  deed.  Learn 
to  use  the  mentality  rightly,  and  not  for  harmful  purposes. 
Don't  be  a  dreamer,  or  a  crank.  Put  off  desires  to  idle 
away  a  life,  and  learn  to  be  useful  to  self,  and  to  the 
world.  Pray  for  strength  to  be  practical,  and  to  put  down 
imaginative  and  harmful  inclinations.  Earnest,  honest 
prayers  will  inspire  mental  vigor  and  banish  harmful  habits 
and  desires. 


164  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  THIRTY-EIGHT 

THAT  NO  MAN  OR  WOMAN  SHOULD  BE  PERMITTED  TO  MARRY 

WHO    IS    MENTALLY    OR    PHYSICALLY    DEFICIENT,    OR 

WHO      IS      AFFLICTED      WITH      A      DISEASE      OR 

INFIRMITY    THAT     MAY    BE    INHERITED 

THERE  is  no  question  but  that  the  sins  of  the  fathers 
may  be  visited  on  their  children,  also  that  children 
may  inherit  mental  and  physical  deficiencies  and  in- 
firmities that  would  make  life  a  burden  to  them  and  to 
those  responsible  for  their  existence.  Another  cause  for 
complaint  is  that  drunken,  bestial  fathers,  and  immoral 
mothers,  often  bring  children  into  the  world  who  inherit 
the  traits  of  their  parents,  and  usually  begin  a  youthful 
career  of  wickedness  and  crime.  There  would  not  be  so 
many  vile  slums  to  disgrace  humanity,  if  such  marriages 
and  methods  of  raising  children  were  prohibited.  It  has 
often  been  said,  "Why  does  God  permit  these  things?"  If 
we  had  a  God  who  would  permit  such  a  palpable  disgrace 
to  humanity.  He  would  not  be  worthy  of  recognition.  But 
we  have  no  personal  God  who  is  responsible*  for  the  sins 
and  misdeeds  of  the  world;  therefore  we  should  try  to 
stamp  them  out  ourselves. 

Laws  have  been  enacted  in  various  states,  forbidding  the 
marriage  of  idiots,  or  mental  defectives,  but  there  is  a 
difference  between  defectives  and  deficients.  The  men- 
tally deficient  person  would  be  one  who  would  have  sense 
enough  to  court  a  hundred,  but  hardly  enough  mental 
ability  to  support  a  wife  and  family.  A  woman  might  be 
deficient,  and  become  a  slatternly,  incompetent  housekeeper, 
and  an  incapable  mother  of  children.  It  is  rather  a  strange 
freak  of  nature,  that  men  and  women  who  do  not  possess 
enough  good  sense  to  be  graded  as  competent  people,  can 
procreate  children. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  165 

Children  bom  from  parents  who  are  either  mentally  or 
physically  deficient,  or  who  suffer  from  an  inherited  dis- 
ease, are  to  be  pitied.  They  enter  Ufe  with  a  burden  that 
must  inevitably  prove  to  be  their  undoing.  Man  would 
never  breed  defective  animals.  He  could  not  afford  the 
loss.  But  he  would  allow  his  relatives,  friends,  or  neigh- 
bors to  marry  cripples,  in  mind  or  body,  and  then  wonder 
why  the  public  must  support  county  asylums,  where  the 
children  of  these  cripples  may  find  homes. 

Another  cause  for  complaint  is  the  example  parents 
set  for  their  children.  A  drunken,  swearing  father,  or  a 
frowsy,  scolding  mother,  seldom  realizes  the  truthfulness 
of  the  old  adage  "Like  father,  like  son."  Children  cannot 
grow  up  in  a  household  where  there  are  domestic  troubles 
without  fixing  them  in  their  mentalities,  to  sooner  or  latei 
be  developed  and  made  realities  in  their  lives.  A  son  will 
learn  to  smoke,  or  chew  tobacco,  and  to  swear  and  do 
things  that  daddy  did.  The  daughter  will  become  a  scold 
and  a  slattern  from  habit.  She  has  seen  her  mother  slouch 
around  half  dressed  and  talking  loudly,  until  she,  too,  has 
acquired  the  habit. 

Parents  should  remember  that  children  begin  mental 
training  at  .an  early  age,  and  every  act,  good  or  bad,  that 
comes  under  their  observation  will  make  a  mental  im- 
pression either  to  furnish  food  for  thought  later  on,  or  to 
be  imitated.  Mental  training  consists  of  what  is  learned  by 
study,  thought,  observation,  and  of  all  else  picked  up  by  the 
use  of  the  five  senses.  Children  are  quick  to  learn,  and  to 
them,  at  an  early  age,  wrong  doing  has  an  equal  value  with 
right  doing.  Until  old  enough  to  understand  the  difference, 
children  do  not  know  right  from  wrong  doing. 

The  right  start  in  life  is  essential  to  the  welfare  of  chil- 
dren. There  is  not  a  single  thought  or  act  in  the  life  of  a 
child,  that  does  not  result  from  brain  cell  development. 
The  growth  of  their  bodies  and  physical  functions  keep 
pace  with  the  development  of  their  mentalities.    A  child 


166      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

advanced  in  years  should  not  have  an  undeveloped  mental- 
ity, nor  can  this  be  possible  if  the  cellular  functions  are 
active  and  vigorous.  That  is  one  reason  why  parents  should 
not  marry  unless  they  are  normal,  and  not  deficient  in 
mind  or  body. 

Teach  children  to  pray.  Give  them  to  understand  that 
prayer  will  guide  them  and  cause  them  to  become  good 
men  and  women.  A  prayerful  mother  will  raise  desirable 
children.  A  prayerful  father  will  always  be  a  good  example 
for  his  children  to  follow.  Prayers  will  help  and  hasten 
the  mental  development  of  children.  There  will  be  no 
wrong  doing  unless  there  is  cellular  energy  to  prompt  it. 
Keep  that  development  out  of  a  child's  mentality  if  possible. 
Mental  training  for  right  doing  will  do  it.  Prayers  to  do 
right  will  exert  a  wonderful  influence  in  developing  a  child's 
mind.  It  will  enable  the  child  to  grow  into  adult  life  as  a 
credit  and  an  ornament  to  society. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  167 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  THIRTY-NINE 

THAT   CONVICTED   CRIMINALS    SHOULD    NEVER   BE   PERMITTED 
TO  RETURN  TO  PRIVATE  LIFE,  UNTIL  THEY  HAVE  BEEN 
AFFORDED  OPPORTUNITY  TO  REGENERATE  THEIR 
MENTALITIES,  AND  BE   IN   A   FIT  CONDI- 
TION TO  BECOME  WORTHY  CITIZENS 

A  CRIMINAL  commits  crime,  because  he  cannot  help 
it.  He  is  possessed  with  a  mentality  controlled  by  an 
influence  that  prompts  wrong  doing,  and  only  the 
fear  of  punishment  will  prevent  him  from  following  his 
inclinations.  Whenever  a  criminal  thinks  he  will  not  be 
detected,  he  will  commit  depredations  and  prey  upon  the 
public. 

Several  explanations  have  already  been  made  in  this 
volume  why  the  mentality  is  the  man,  but  to  apply  the 
principle  directly  to  the  case  of  a  criminal  it  will  be  re- 
peated. A  mentality  consists  of  myriads  of  brain  and  nerve 
cells  located  in  the  brain  organ,  and  they  are  connected  with 
the  nerve  system  that  ramifies  in  every  part  of  the  body. 
This  brain  cellular  organism  is  divided  into  centers,  each  of 
which  has  its  particular  function  in  influencing  physical 
and  thought  activities.  Mental  effort  develops  and  actuates 
the  brain  and  nerve  cells,  and  causes  them  to  prompt 
thoughts,  acts,  deeds  and  impulses.  The  process  of  develop- 
ing brain  cells  is  designated  as  mental  training,  and  it  be- 
gins with  infancy  and  ends  with  death,  if  the  cellular  or- 
ganism is  vigorous  and  active.  There  are  two  elements  in 
every  mentality,  created  by  right  or  wrong  doing.  One  of 
these  elements  is  always  in  control.  If  our  lives  have  chiefly 
been  spent  in  wrong  doing,  in  other  words  if  our  mental 
control  has  been  created  by  thought  and  acts  of  wrong 
doing,  our  mentalities  will  be  dominated  by  that  influence. 
The  only  way  the  objectionable  control  may  be  changed 


168      FOR   THE  GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

is  to  upbuild  and  strengthen  a  desire  for  right  doing.  Other- 
wise we  will  continue  to  do  wrong.  That  would  be  our 
nature.  It  would  be  the  promptings  of  our  undesirable 
mental  control. 

A  criminal  will  be  a  criminal  until  the  influence  that 
controls  his  mental  activities  is  subjugated,  on  the  same 
principle  that  the  best  protection  from  the  bite  of  a  rattle- 
snake is  to  pull  its  fangs.  Readers  will  call  to  mind  the 
many  efforts  made  to  reform  criminals  after  they  have  been 
discharged  from  prison  Ufe,  most  of  which  were  failures.  A 
criminal  is  not  like  other  human  beings.  His  mentality  does 
not  always  respond  to  acts  of  kindness.  He  is  a  criminal  by 
nature,  instinct,  and  inclination,  and  handling  him  with 
gloves,  while  in  that  mental  condition,  is  like  trying  to  pet 
a  wolf.  That  does  not  mean  that  the  mentality  of  a  criminal 
may  not  be  regenerated,  and  made  to  prompt  right  doing. 
The  task  would  be  difficult,  and  could  not  be  accomplished, 
while  the  criminal  was  herded  with  other  convicts  in  prison 
life.  He  would  have  to  be  given  outdoor  existence,  where 
he  could  earn  a  livelihood  and  be  in  communion  with  na- 
ture. It  would  also  be  necessary  to  require  the  criminal 
to  take  up  the  prayer  cure,  heartily  and  earnestly,  that  a 
strong  desire  for  right  doing  might  become  his  constant  and 
increasing  thought. 

Heartfelt  prayer  arouses  desire  for  right  doing.  It  is 
the  only  way  to  reach  and  awaken  mental  effort  that  will 
exert  a  beneficial  influence  over  the  mind.  We  pray  to  our 
better  nature,  to  an  innate  power  that  uplifts  our  thoughts 
and  upbuilds  our  hopes  and  desires  for  a  better  life.  No 
prayer  except  that  for  self-benefit  will  be  answered.  We 
might  pray  forever  for  change  in  anything  else  in  creation, 
and  our  prayerful  efforts  would  be  wasted.  We  could  pray 
always  for  the  safety  and  welfare  of  our  fellow  beings 
without  benefiting  them  in  any  way.  We  are  all  creatures 
of  nature. 

It  is  difficult  to  convince  church  people  that  there  is  no 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  169 

personal  God,  divine  mind,  or  supernatural  influence  to 
control  our  thoughts  and  guide  our  acts  and  deeds  for  right 
doing.  To  substantiate  their  belief  in  this  supernatural  con- 
trol they  refer  to  the  kindly  acts  and  deeds  of  persons 
afflicted  with  a  wrong-doing  or  criminal  nature.  Every 
person  of  mature  age  has  undergone  a  mental  training  that 
developed  both  right-  and  wrong-doing  brain  cellularism. 
It  would  be  impossible  for  an  individual  to  exist  in  this 
day  and  age  and  be  wholly  and  entirely  wicked.  We  are  all 
possessed  with  thoughts,  tendencies  and  inclinations  for 
both  right  and  wrong  doing.  The  proclivities  of  an  animal 
nature  prevent  the  creation  of  a  saintly  existence,  and  there 
must  necessarily  be  a  dual  development  of  both  good  and 
undesirable  mental  tendencies.  A  criminal  will  therefore 
occasionally  be  controlled  by  worthy  influences.  It  is  the 
possession  of  this  desirable  mental  control  that  gives  hope 
of  his  ultimate  reformation  under  favorable  surroundings 
and  conditions. 


170  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   FORTY 

THAT    THE    MYSTERY    CONCERNING    THE     MENTAL    DEVELOP- 
MENT    OF     CERTAIN     TYPES     OF     GENIUS,     AND     OF     YOUNG 
PRODIGIES,     MAY    BE    EXPLAINED    BY    LOOKING    UP    THE 
TRAITS    OF     CHARACTER    OF    THEIR    ANCESTORS 

TRAITS  of  character,  pecularities  of  form,  and  other 
similarities  of  the  mental  and  physical  functions  are 
inherited.  It  is  supposed  that  we  are  human  repro- 
ductions of  those  to  whom  we  owe  life.  We  are  of  animal 
descent.  We  were  propagated  and  born  in  the  same  manner 
that  all  vertebrates  come  into  existence.  There  is  no  dif- 
ference. We  may  have  inherited  genius,  or  it  may  have 
been  disease,  or  an  infirmity.  We  are  not  so  particular  in 
breeding  our  own  kind  as  we  are  when  raising  horses, 
cattle,  sheep,  dogs,  hogs,  cats  or  other  domestic  animals. 
Rare  and  well  bred  domestic  animals  bring  good  prices  in 
the  market.  We  raise  and  sell  them,  but  as  we  consider 
ourselves  beings  of  a  personal  God's  choosing,  we  depend 
on  His  judgment  in  the  matter  of  our  own  breeding.  That 
is  a  serious  mistake. 

The  brain  organism,  and  every  other  physical  organ  and 
function,  are  handed  down  to  us  through  the  process  of  pro- 
creation. That  process  is  precisely  the  same  as  the  one 
used  by  the  domestic  animals,  which  we  are  so  careful  to 
breed  from  the  best  stock  to  be  had.  We  are  super-animals 
and  nothing  else,  and  are  subject  to  nature's  laws.  There 
is  no  dodging  that  fact.  We  inherit  animal  proclivities, 
mental  attributes,  detrimental  influences,  and  other  traits 
of  our  ancestors,  through  the  medium  of  our  brain  cellular 
organs.  Domestic  and  other  vertebrate  animals  inherit  the 
five  senses  only,  in  connection  with  good  or  undesirable 
physical  forms  and  functions.  We  inherit  the  five  senses, 
and  the  physical  forms  and  functions  of  the  man  animal. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  171 

also  the  sixth  or  super-sense,  which  actuates  and  develops 
the  super-mental  powers  of  a  full-fledged  human  being. 
These  powers  are  inherited  in  an  undeveloped  state,  from 
our  ancestors,  at  the  time  of  our  procreation. 

The  brain  organism  is  the  seat  of  the  mentality,  which 
controls  the  five  senses  used  by  domestic  and  other  ver- 
tebrate animals,  and  also  controls  the  physical  func- 
tions, both  of  which  enable  them  to  thrive  and  procreate. 
This  mentality  is  actuated  by  brain  and  nerve  cells,  in  the 
same  manner  as  that  of  a  human  being.  As  super-animals 
we  inherit  a  brain  organism  consisting  of  more  brain  cen- 
ters, and  a  far  greater  number  of  brain  and  nerve  cells  sub- 
ject to  development.  There  are  brain  cell  centers  for  phys- 
ical functions,  for  the  use  of  the  five  senses,  and  for  the 
sixth  sense,  that  uplifts  man  from  the  condition  of  an  ordi- 
nary vertebrate.  The  sixth  sense,  however,  does  not  alter 
the  nature  of  man's  animal  tendencies  and  proclivities,  al- 
though if  called  into  use  the  sixth  sense  will  subjugate  and 
keep  these  tendencies  and  proclivities  under  control. 

We  now  come  to  the  point  where  the  cause  for  the  ap- 
pearance of  people  with  great  mental  genius,  and  of  youth- 
ful prodigies,  may  be  explained.  Both  of  these  unusual 
developments  of  superior  human  intelligence  owe  their 
ability  largely  to  their  ancestors.  A  part  of  it,  however,  is 
due  to  the  studious  efforts  of  the  surprisingly  brilliant  peo- 
ple. Traits  of  inherited  genius  do  not  always  appear  in 
successive  generations.  They  may  not  be  developed  for 
several  generations,  and  then  will  make  their  appearance. 
The  brain  cells  that  eventually  are  to  render  the  possessor 
famous  are  sometimes  inherited  in  an  undeveloped  state 
in  the  brain  organism  of  an  unlucky  owner,  and  for  some 
reason  were  not  developed,  but  were  carried  by  their  pos- 
sessor over  to  another  generation.  Mankind  would  never 
have  made  progress  in  mental  development  if  this  method 
of  inheriting  brain  cell  ability  were  not  a  fact.  The  brain 
organism  is  a  physical  function  and  is  subject  to  inheritance 


172      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

in  the  same  manner  as  other  physical  traits  are  handed  down 
from  parents  to  children.  This  same  law  of  nature  gives 
us  improved  domestic  animals,  and  it  also  applies  to  man. 

The  sixth,  or  innate  sense,  is  the  only  sense  capable  of 
development  by  mental  effort.  We  cannot  increase  the 
strength  or  sensitiveness  of  our  sight,  touch,  smell,  taste 
or  hearing  by  prayer,  or  other  mental  appUcation.  The  five 
senses  are  not  subject  to  such  treatment.  It  is  the  sixth 
sense,  that  dominates  not  only  our  mentalities,  but  all  of 
our  other  functions.  It  enables  us  to  memorize  and  acquire 
information  and  knowledge.  It  controls  the  use  of  our 
mentalities,  and  gives  us  power  to  think,  study  out  prob- 
lems of  every  kind,  invent  and  devise  improvements,  carry 
on  business  enterprises,  and  do  everything  else  that  we 
do  except  to  see,  hear,  touch,  taste  and  smell.  And  these 
senses  are  under  control  of  the  sixth  sense.  Through  the 
use  of  the  sixth  sense,  we  are  enabled  to  subjugate  desires 
for  wrong  doing,  and  to  establish  right  doing  as  the  dom- 
inating influence  of  our  lives.  Were  it  not  for  the  mental 
effort  aroused  by  this  sense,  and  kept  alive  and  active  as 
a  controlling  power,  we  would  soon  drop  back  into  the 
same  bestial  condition  that  governed  the  existence  of  pre- 
historic man. 

It  would  be  well  to  more  carefully  consider  why  the 
Creator  endowed  man  with  the  sixth  or  innate  sense.  The 
endowment  could  not  have  been  solely  for  the  purpose  of 
permitting  man  to  develop  himself  into  a  demi-god  with 
ability  to  take  possession  of  the  world  and  control  it  for 
his  own  selfish  uses.  Free  from  the  influence  of  animal 
tendencies  the  sixth  sense  is  capable  of  causing  man  to 
rise  to  the  height  of  an  extreme  degree  of  intellectuality. 
All  men  of  great  genius  have  been  devout  in  nature  and 
practice.  They  have  been  disciples  of  a  prayerful  habit,  and 
during  that  part  of  their  existence  in  which  their  fame  was 
upbuilded  these  men  of  intellectual  worth  abstained  from 
indulgences  that  debase  and  ruin  the  mind.    The  germ  of 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  173 

mortal  life  bestowed  on  mankind  unquestionably  bears  with 
it  the  stamp  of  genius  and  intellectuality.  It  distinguishes 
and  uplifts  man  from  the  bestiality  of  an  animal  existence, 
and  the  proof  of  that  assertion  may  be  found  in  the  fact 
that  all  other  vertebrates  are  true  animals  in  instinct,  habit, 
intelligence  and  methods  of  living. 

Look  still  further  into  the  reason  why  man  was  endowed 
with  the  germ  of  intellectuality.  All  gross  desires,  base 
tendencies,  and)  undesirable  habits  and  inclinations  are 
developments  of  an  animal  nature  .  They  spring  from 
habits  and  inclinations  acquired  through  the  promptings  of 
the  five  senses,  touch,  taste,  sight,  smell  and  hearing.  These 
senses  control  animal  instinct  and  belong  exclusively  to 
vertebrate  animal  existence,  of  which  mankind  is  a  species. 
One  of  the  duties  of  the  sixth,  or  innate  sense,  is  to  sub- 
jugate man's  animal  tendencies  when  called  upon  to  do  so, 
and  the  only  safe  and  sure  method  of  employing  the  sixth 
sense  to  overcome  these  tendencies  is  to  develop  and  up- 
build it  by  prayerful  endeavor.  There  are  two  other 
essential  motives  for  upbuilding  the  sixth,  or  innate  sense, 
aside  from  the  banishment  of  the  sin  of  wrong  doing.  One 
is  the  motive  for  restoring  health  to  afflicted  physical  func- 
tions, and  the  other  is  the  important  and  much  desired 
preparation  for  immortal  transcendency. 


174  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   FORTY-ONE 

THAT   PROFANITY,    THE   USE   OF   SWEAR   WORDS,    IS   AN    INDI- 
CATION  OF  A   FOUL,   UNCOUTH    MIND,  AND   ITS 
USE  SHOULD  BE  ABANDONED 

PROFANITY  is  not  an  unforgivable  sin,  or  wrong 
doing.  It  really  has  no  alarming  influence  on  the 
character  of  the  swearing  animal,  but  it  is  an  indi- 
cation of  his  mental  foulness,  and  obviates  the  necessity  of 
a  sign  board  warning  people  to  keep  away  from  the  verbal 
profligate.  Swearing,  considered  from  the  effect  it  produces, 
must  be  looked  at  from  another  standpoint.  Oaths  and 
foul  language  are  a  part  of  a  mental  training.  A  tendency 
for  wrong  doing  may  be  inherited,  but  language  and  efforts 
at  doing  wrong  are  always  acquired,  in  the  same  manner 
that  verses  from  the  bible  may  be  memorized.  Mental 
training  does  not  consist  altogether  of  acquiring  knowledge, 
or  of  studying  languages.  It  embraces  the  performance  of 
every  act,  deed  and  movement,  of  every  thought  either 
memorized  or  spoken,  of  everything  seen,  heard,  touched, 
smelled,  felt  or  tasted.  Mental  training  consists  of  the  stor- 
ing away  in  the  mentality  of  everything  done  or  accom- 
plished. Life  is  the  creator  of  mental  effort,  of  mental 
training,  and  the  senses  promote  or  excite  the  activities. 
The  use  of  "cuss  words,"  then,  is  only  a  slight  episode 
in  a  career  of  mental  training,  but  it  is  reprehensible,  dis- 
gusting and  objectionable.  The  same  effort  required  in 
learning  to  use  foul  language  could  be  applied  to  much 
better  advantage  by  acquiring  the  habit  of  speaking  politely, 
genteelly  and  like  a  respectable,  acceptable  person.  People 
who  lose  control  of  themselves  are  most  apt  to  use  foul 
language.  They  seem  to  think  that  touching  off  the  maga- 
zine that  holds  "cuss  words"  will  keep  them  from  other- 
wise exploding. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  175 

Kind  thoughts  and  mild  language  will  do  more  towards 
smoothing  down  mental  perturbances  than  anything  else. 
Brain  storms  and  foul,  vindictive  language  are  detrimental 
to  right-doing  control.  A  wicked  man  who  is  demented 
will  swear,  and  swear,  and  then  keep  on  swearing,  because 
he  has  lost  ability  to  control  the  activities  of  his  mentality. 
A  man  with  a  mentality  acquired  by  right  doing  will  never 
lose  mental  control.  Wrong  doing  destroys  mental  control 
by  impairing  and  perverting  the  use  of  the  sixth  sense,  the 
attribute  that  raises  man  above  the  level  of  an  animal.  When 
a  man's  eyes  see  red,  and  he  runs  amuck,  swearing  venge- 
ance on  his  fellow  kind,  he  is  crazy  and  has  lost  mental  con- 
trol. Such  men  are  prone  to  use  foul,  objectionable  lan- 
guage.  Their  mentalities  indicate  a  life  of  wrong  training. 


176  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   FORTY-TWO 

THAT  HUMAN  LOVE  IS  SUPREME  WHEN  PROPERLY  DEVELOPED, 

AND    THAT    IT    IS     MANKIND'S    CHIEF    BENEFACTOR. 

WHEN    NOT  RECIPROCATED,   LOVE   BECOMES 

A  DISTRESSING  TORMENT 

THERE  is  no  worse  enemy  to  mental  comfort  and 
balance  than  uncontrollable  love,  and  no  worse  foe 
to  mental  control  than  hatred  inspired  by  a  love  not 
reciprocated  and  appreciated.  When  it  comes  to  discussing 
the  ins  and  outs  of  human  love,  there  are  so  many  peculi- 
arities and  so  many  degrees  of  sincerity  in  that  indispens- 
able emotion  that  it  is  difficult  to  find  either  a  starting  or 
a  stopping  place.  Human  love,  in  its  first  stages,  is  an 
emotion.  It  originates  through  the  use  of  the  five  senses, 
and  is  stirred  into  action  by  some  admirable  characteristic 
of  the  object  of  the  affection.  Sooner  or  later,  the  emotion, 
when  firmly  fixed  in  the  mentality,  is  known  as  love.  There 
may  be  such  a  thing  as  love  at  first  sight,  but  that  is  hardly 
possible.  A  young  man  and  woman  may  meet  and  become 
immediately  attractive  to  each  other.  After  a  time,  they 
think  it  was  love  at  first  sight,  but  the  affection  had  then 
grown  to  a  reality,  and  seemed  as  if  it  had  always  existed. 

Passion  and  desire  have  much  to  do  with  first  exciting 
the  emotions,  and  then  in  creating  love.  Passion  and  de- 
sire are  animal  propensities,  and  are  part  of  the  nature 
of  almost  every  human  being.  Passion  and  desire  belong 
to  the  procreative  function,  and  when  strongly  developed 
are  almost  uncontrollable.  Under  such  a  condition,  these 
propensities  create  great  mental  suffering  and  distress,  both 
to  their  possessor  and  to  the  victims  of  their  inordinate 
desire. 

Love,  calmly  controlled  and  carefully  trained,  is  the 
best  and  most  satisfactory  of  mental  developments.    It  is 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  177 

a  cellular  influence  that  is  subject  to  intense  feeling,  espe- 
cially when  not  held  under  subjection.  Love,  reasonable, 
controllable,  is  an  inestimable  treasure.  It  creates  happy 
homes,  propagates  wonderful,  much  valued  families,  is  the 
cause  of  personal  and  public  contentment,  and  prompts  joy 
and  happiness  too  blissful  for  description.  These  great 
boons  to  humanity,  and  for  the  good  of  the  world,  spring 
from  the  existence  of  true,  unalloyed  love. 

There  are  other  types  of  love,  some  of  which  are  com- 
mendable, but  none  of  them  compare  with  the  true  love 
that  knows  no  turning,  no  end  except  death,  no  sorrow  that 
does  not  change  to  joy  in  the  presence  of  its  idol,  no  dimi- 
nution because  of  separation,  no  suffering  when  privations 
intervene,  and  no  fear  that  God  will  not  approve  it.  There 
is  a  love  principally  kept  alive  by  passion,  that  is  real  and 
commendable  until  misfortune  interposes,  when  the  pos- 
sessor of  the  passionate  love  will  seek  another  affinity. 

Then,  there  is  the  all-consuming  love,  that  incites  jeal- 
ousy and  causes  its  victim  to  become  partly  demented, 
when  excited  by  jealous  apprehensions.  Such  a  love  would 
be  both  desirable  and  admirable  if  it  could  be  controlled  by 
reason.  But  that  is  not  always  possible.  The  excitable 
temperament  of  the  possessor  may  not  be  controllable,  or 
the  insincerity  and  disloyaHty  of  the  consort  may  be  the 
cause  of  the  jealousy.  In  that  event,  the  situation  is  truly 
to  be  regretted.  No  mental  agony  could  be  evoked  that 
would  cause  so  much  misery  as  jealousy  prompted  by  love. 
It  is  a  mental  hell  turned  lose  for  the  time  being.  It  is  a 
torment  too  intense,  unbearable  and  painful  to  describe. 
It  is  despair,  temporary  death  to  hope,  and  complete  de- 
jection, all  consolidated  and  flung  into  the  heart  at  one 
time.    Such  is  jealousy. 

There  is  a  cure  for  all  the  tribulations  caused  by  love, 
but  no  alleviation  for  love  itself.  Love  is  an  attribute  that 
should  need  no  easement.  It  should  stand  forever  in  token 
of  the  heart's  affection.    What  is  life  without  love?    A 


178       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

mental  desert  without  an  oasis,  a  broad  sea  without  a  land- 
ing place,  a  long  silence  without  a  joyful  awakening,  a  men- 
tality without  a  kind  thought. 

The  cure  for  unrequited  love,  for  disappointments,  jeal- 
ousy, uncontrollable  desire,  disloyalty,  lack  of  control,  and 
other  love  afflictions  is  a  change  in  the  mentality.  Love  it- 
self, when  loyal  and  true,  needs  no  change,  but  mental 
troubles  growing  out  of  lack  of  control  require  a  panacea, 
Avhich  may  only  be  obtained  through  the  efficacy  of  prayer. 
Prayer  will  upbuild  the  mental  control  for  right  thinking. 
That  is  what  love  disappointment  needs.  Jealousy,  dejec- 
tion and  similar  love  tribulations  may  be  put  into  the  discard 
by  the  mental  strength  to  be  found  in  sincere,  earnest 
prayer.  Pray  for  strength  to  do  right  and  keep  on  praying, 
night  and  day,  until  relief  is  had. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  179 

PROPOSITION   NUMBER  FORTY-THREE 

THAT  PRAYERS  TO  SAINTS  AND  OTHER   MORTALS,   WHO   HAVE 

DEPARTED    THIS    LIFE,    WILL    NOT    BE    ANSWERED.      ONLY 

INDIVIDUAL      SUPPLICATIONS      FOR      MENTAL      AND 

PHYSICAL    WELFARE    WILL    PROVE    BENEFICIAL 

IT  HAS  long  been  the  practice  of  certain  church  organ- 
izations to  recommend  that  members  offer  prayers  to 
saints  and  martyrs  for  earthly  rewards  and  benefits. 
There  could  be  no  harm  in  this  method  of  seeking  such 
favors,  but  there  is  no  possibility  of  their  being  bestowed. 
That  is  an  evident  fact,  or  there  could  not  be  so  much  suf- 
fering, misery  and  wrong  doing  in  the  world.  If  God  will 
not  heed  our  invocations,  how  could  we  expect  saints  to 
do  so? 

Excuses  are  frequently  made  for  God*s  apparent  neglect 
to  interfere  with  mortal  affairs  by  statements  that  scourges, 
wars,  and  other  national  calamities  are  punishments  for 
some  great  wrong,  for  which  we  are  responsible.  If  a 
personal  God  could  have  prevented  the  existence  of  these 
wrongs,  why  did  he  not  do  so?  Under  the  influence  and 
protection  of  a  Merciful,  All-Powerful  God,  we  should 
not  be  permitted  to  do  wrong,  either  as  individuals,  or  in 
combination  as  an  army,  or  a  nation.  There  is  no  personal 
God    who  overlooks  and  upbuilds  our  welfare. 

Man  has  fought  his  own  way  upward  from  a  state  of  bar- 
barism to  his  present  intellectual,  civilized  condition.  The 
only  help  God  gave  to  man  was  the  endowment  of  a  supe- 
rior mentality,  capable  of  finally  overcoming  man's  bestial 
tendencies,  inherited  from  his  ancestors.  Had  it  not  been 
a  divine  provision  that  man  should  take  care  of  himself,  God 
would  have  created  him  as  a  perfect  mortal  being,  free  from 
the  evils  that  now  afflict  humanity.  There  is  no  evidence 
in  man's  present  life  that  he  has  received  any  supernatural 
benefits.  If  man  prospers  it  is  by  his  own  efforts.  If  man 
sins,  or  does  wrong,  his  own  courts  of  justice  punish  him. 


180      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

if  the  wrong  doing  is  of  a  criminal  nature.  Man,  from  the 
beginning,  has  been  his  own  free  agent.  He  has  implored 
many  divine  favors,  and  the  only  answer  to  his  prayers 
has  been  the  upbuilding  of  his  mentality.  There  could  be 
no  other  answer. 

In  connection  with  the  continuance  of  the  church  custom 
of  offering  prayers  to  saints,  there  are  other  religious 
ceremonies  which  might  be  dispensed  with,  were  it  not  for 
the  good  they  do  in  arousing  a  sincere  desire  for  self-bet- 
terment. Any  church  rite,  ceremony  or  custom  that  awakens 
better  thought  and  prompts  an  effort  at  right  doing  should 
be  continued,  no  matter  where  it  comes  from,  or  what  church 
organization  practices  it.  Thinking  right  is  the  first  step  to 
doing  right.  The  person  who  desires  to  do  right  will  always 
find  a  way  to  cause  that  desire  to  become  a  reality.  God 
endowed  man  with  a  mentality,  that  he  might  uplift  him- 
self and  the  world  from  bestiality  and  wrong  doing.  That 
is  the  answer  to  the  question:  Why  does  God  neglect  us 
in  our  many  troubles? 

We  should  banish  from  our  minds  thoughts  and  desires 
for  supernatural  relief  from  our  troubles.  We  are  our  own 
lords  and  masters  and  necessarily  must  be  our  own  saviors 
from  a  mortal  existence  of  sorrow,  suffering  and  wrong 
doing.  Church  associations  will  prove  helpful,  but  self- 
regeneration  must  be  had  by  our  own  individual  efforts. 
There  may  be  a  heaven,  where  saints  and  martyrs  officiate 
as  assistants  to  a  personal  God  in  His  distribution  of  mercy 
and  forgiveness  of  sinful  transgression.  But  no  mortal  of 
high  or  low  degree  in  religious  affairs  has  definite  knowl- 
edge of  the  existence  of  a  personal  God,  or  of  His  heaven 
filled  with  angels  enjoying  eternal  bliss.  All  such  informa- 
tion is  like  the  fable  of  the  existence  of  Santa  Glaus  with 
which  we  delude  little  children.  We  must  look  to  a  higher 
power  than  a  personal  God,  for  salvation  and  immortality. 
That  Deity  is  the  Creator  of  the  universe  and  all  of  its 
belongings,  including  mankind. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  181 

PROPROSITION    NUMBER    FORTY-FOUR 

THAT   MAN  DOES   MUCH   TO  PREVENT  THE  ENJOYMENT  OF  A 
LONG  LIFE,  AND  THE  FULL  USE  OF  HIS  MENTALITY 

THE  mentality  is  the  man,  and  if  the  cellular  organism 
which  constitutes  the  mentality  is  strong  and  vigorous, 
the  person  possessing  it  will  be  healthy,  free  from 
physical  troubles,  and  will  live  a  long  and  useful  life.  There 
are  a  number  of  reasons  why  that  statement  is  true.  The 
mentality  controls  every  organ  and  function  of  the  body. 
The  slightest  pain,  illness,  movement,  or  lack  of  function  of 
any  organ  is  made  known  through  the  mentality.  Should  the 
mentality  be  weakened  through  the  use  of  narcotics,  to- 
bacco, strong  drink  or  excessive  or  unnatural  indulgences, 
the  bodily  functions  will  suffer  and  illness  will  follow. 
Brain  storms,  and  other  forms  of  rage  and  fits  of  temper,  are 
injurious  to  the  mentality,  and  if  persisted  in  will  cause  loss 
of  mental  control.  The  habit  of  overeating,  and  every  other 
habit  that  causes  ill  health,  are  indications  of  mental  weak- 
ness. Frequent  indulgences  will  cause  the  cellular  control 
and  the  bodily  functions  to  lose  their  vitality,  and  finally 
end  in  developing  disease. 

People  in  the  youth  and  vigor  of  life  are  prone  to  for- 
get that  the  pitcher  may  be  carried  once  too  often  to  the 
well.  There  is  a  limit  to  the  strength  and  vitality  of  brain 
cells,  also  of  bodily  functions.  Sometimes,  inherited  weak- 
ness causes  the  danger  point  of  a  breakdown  to  be  nearer. 
But,  in  any  event,  that  breakdown  must  come  sooner  or 
later,  either  from  old  age  or  irrational  indulgences.  It  is 
better  to  always  keep  in  mind  the  one  life-saving  thought, 
never  let  a  habit  be  made  a  mental  fixture.  Before  we  be- 
come invalids,  or  victims  of  mental  and  physical  disorders, 
there  must  be  a  loss  of  cellular  vigor  in  some  part  of  our 
mentalities.  It  is  true  that  the  weakness  may  be  inherited, 
but  it  was  the  result  of  overindulgence  on  the  part  of  an 
ancestor,  and  the  argtmient  applies  just  the  same.  To  avoid 


182       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   1  HE   WORLD 

2L  mental  and  physical  breakdown,  care  should  be  taken  not 
to  allow  habit  to  cause  overindulgence.  Excesses  of  every 
kind  impair  mental  and  physical  vigor,  and  shorten  the  span 
of  life. 

The  mentality,  when  normal,  is  the  strongest,  yet  most 
sensitive,  physical  function  connected  with  our  anatomy. 
It  is  the  fount  that  supplies  us  with  life,  vigor  and  strength, 
and  keeps  our  other  functions  in  good  condition,  when  not 
overworked.  It  is  the  supreme  element  of  human  existence, 
and  for  that  reason  should  be  cared  for  as  our  most  precious 
possession.  But  who  ever  thought  of  preserving  a  mental- 
ity? If  a  leg  is  sprained,  or  a  tooth  aches,  we  run  to  the 
doctor.  If  we  have  a  pain,  something  must  be  done  to  alle- 
viate the  suffering.  Nine  times  out  of  ten  we  have  been 
mentally  warned  that  these  afflictions  would  come,  unless 
means  were  taken  to  prevent  them.  It  must  be  plain,  then, 
that  we  should  protect  ourselves  from  the  assaults  of  nature 
by  not  allowing  detrimental  habits  to  get  control  of  our 
appetites,  desires  and  other  animal  propensities,  and  also  by 
keeping  our  mentalities  strong  and  vigorous. 

The  question  every  self-respecting  man  should  ask  him- 
self is  whether  or  not  he  can  afford  to  sacrifice  his  health, 
comfort,  future  hope  of  salvation  and  all  else  in  life  worth 
preserving  for  the  apparent  temporary  enjoyment  of  bad 
habits  and  excessive  indulgences.  That  vital  query  is  worthy 
of  careful  consideration.  It  is  easier  to  give  up  wrong 
doing  in  the  earlier  stages  of  that  experience  than  it  will 
be  when  life's  energies  and  vigor  have  been  sapped  and 
weakened  by  harmful  practices.  A  mentality  cannot  be 
successfully  regenerated  when  its  cellular  tissues  do  not 
respond  to  mental  activities.  The  old  saying  that  "it  is 
never  too  late  to  repent"  is  no  longer  applicable  to  human 
reformation.  Long-continued  overindulgence  of  any  kind 
destroys  the  vitality  of  cellular  tissue  and  causes  mental 
and  physical  disability.  The  time  to  stop  doing  wrong  is 
when  we  have  mental  strength  and  ability  to  do  so. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  183 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   FORTY-FIVE 

THAT    INTUITION,     MENTAL    INSTINCT,    IS    ANOTHER    PROOF 
THAT      man's      information      AND      KNOWLEDGE      AC- 
QUIRED   FROM    OUTSIDE    SOURCES    ARE   ATTAINED   BY 
MEANS    OF    THE    FIVE    SENSES 

MENTAL  instinct,  or  intuition,  as  it  is  commonly 
known,  is  a  feeling  prompted  by  the  five  senses. 
Seeing  a  horrid  object  prompts  a  feeling  of  dis- 
like. The  sight  of  a  beautiful  person  or  thing  causes  the 
opposite  impression.  Hearing,  touch,  taste  and  smell  each 
prompt  similar  likes  and  dislikes.  The  gentle  sex  is  more 
sensitive  to  moods  brought  on  by  the  senses.  Women  are 
more  emotional  and  possess  quicker  and  more  acute  per- 
ception than  men.  Whenever  a  woman's  prejudices 
are  aroused  by  the  first  appearance  of  a  man,  or  an  object 
that  attracts  her  attention,  it  will  be  found  on  investigation 
♦hat  the  opinion  thus  formed  is  not  far  wroner.  Mental  in- 
stinct is  simply  an  opinion  formed  by  an  impression  created 
by  the  five  senses.  It  is  a  function  that  may  not  always  be 
reliable.  Prejudices  and  dislikes  are  ugly  things  to  deal 
with,  and  when  aroused  great  care  should  be  taken  to  in- 
vestigate them  in  order  to  avoid  mistakes. 

Mental  instinct,  or  intuition,  that  creates  favorable  im- 
pressions is  not  so  dangerous.  But  there  are  times  when 
a  handsome,  clean-looking  rascal,  or  an  attractive,  beauti- 
ful object,  may  be  very  deceptive  until  more  closely  investi- 
gated, when  it  will  prove  to  be  anything  but  desirable.  There 
is  a  class  of  men  who  make  it  a  business  to  prey  on  women 
susceptible  to  flattery  and  an  attractive  appearance.  These 
men  know  that  good  looks  go  a  long  way  towards  convinc- 
ing a  woman  that  almost  any  kind  of  a  business  venture  is 
profitable,  or  that  the  woman,  herself,  is  wonderfully 
charming,  provided  she  has  money.   Intuition,  therefore,  is 


184       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

not  always  to  be  trusted,  especially  when  there  is  either 
money  or  future  happiness  at  stake.  We  were  endowed 
with  mentalities  to  be  used  to  protect  ourselves  from  flat- 
tery, deception,  impulsive  acts  and  other  means  of  inter- 
fering with  our  welfare.  Always  think  carefully,  when  in- 
tuition prompts  an  undertaking.  Get  at  the  facts  before 
investing  in  an  enterprise  recommended  by  mental  instinct. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  185 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER  FORTY-SIX 

THAT   THE    MENTAL    ACTIVITY    KNOWN    AS    CONSCIENCE     RE- 
SULTS   FROM     NATURAL    CAUSES.      IT    IS    NOT    A    SPIRITUAL 
MONITOR     THAT    WARNS    ITS    POSSESSOR    OF    HIS    WRONG 
DOING     AND    FINALLY    BECOMES    AN    INSTRUMENT    OF 
MENTAL    TORTURE    BY    PROMPTING    THOUGHTS 
OF    REMORSE    AND    PENITENCE 

THE  two  elements  of  the  mentality,  for  right  and 
wrong  doing,  are  always  in  conflict  with  each  other 
for  the  dominating  control,  unless  one  or  the  other 
of  them  has  attained  a  marked  superiority.  A  man  may  be 
so  good  that  he  will  have  no  conscience,  or  he  may  be  so 
vile  and  unworthy  that  no  murderous  deed  he  might  per- 
petrate would  cause  a  thought  of  regret.  It  is  only  when 
the  two  conflicting  mental  efforts  are  more  nearly  balanced 
that  the  person  possessing  them  will  hear  the  still  voice  of 
the  so-called  conscience.  That  voice,  or  thought,  is  prompt- 
ed by  the  mental  effort  inspiring  regret  for  the  wrong 
doing.  Continued  regrets  for  wrong  doing  will,  in  time, 
change  to  remorseful  thoughts.  Those  thoughts  then  be- 
come a  means  of  mental  punishment.  They  will  constantly 
harass  the  mind.  Remorse  frequently  brings  on  insanity, 
when  mental  control  is  lost.  Sanity  means  an  ability  to 
control  the  mentality  by  mental  effort,  and  to  reject  thoughts 
that  prompt  deeds  for  wrong  doing  of  every  form  and 
nature. 

Uncontrollable  fits  of  rage  and  passion,  if  persistent  and 
frequent,  will  result  in  insanity,  through  the  destruction 
of  brain  cellular  tissues.  Excesses  such  as  the  use  of  alco- 
holic drink  and  narcotics,  sensual  indulgences,  greed  for 
money  and  similar  disorders  often  cause  the  loss  of  mental 
control  through  lack  of  cellular  vigor.  Extreme  mental 
violence  and  agitation  should  also  be  avoided.    A  mind 


186      FOR   THE  GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

that  is  subject  to  attacks  of  nervousness  and  excitement 
indicates  a  weakness  that  should  be  relieved.  Injured  brain 
cells  can  never  be  restored.  Loss  of  the  mind  that  results 
from  such  causes  may  never  be  recovered.  The  time  to 
retain  mental  control  and  prevent  insanity  is  before  the 
crisis.  When  inherited  taints  develop  and  destroy  brain 
cells,  or  when  excesses  cause  cellular  rupture,  there  is  little 
hope  of  recovery  from  the  effects.  But  there  is  always  a 
chance  of  reforming  a  mentality  when  the  brain  cells  are 
not  diseased  or  injured. 

Prayer  is  the  means  of  certain  mental  reformation,  if 
it  is  persistent,  frequent,  sincere  and  devout.  Gross  ex- 
cesses may  be  restricted,  bad  habits  dropped,  injurious  appe- 
tites curbed,  violent  tempers  restrained,  cruel  natures  erad- 
icated, vile  tendencies  overcome,  and  every  other  form  of 
wrong  doing  banished  by  prayer.  That  may  seem  to  be 
an  ill  considered  statement,  a  thoughtless  proposition.  On 
the  contrary  it  is  a  fact  easily  established. 

It  must  be  conceded  that  man's  mentality  controls  all 
his  thoughts,  desires,  acts  and  deeds.  He  does  not  take  a 
drink  of  water,  utter  a  word,  or  perform  an  act  of  any 
kind  that  is  not  prompted  by  his  mentality.  The  reason 
for  this  absolute,  relentless  domination  is  that  man's  brain 
cellular  development  is  the  seat  of  his  mentality.  The  myr- 
iads of  brain  cells  developed  in  the  brain  organ  have 
been  made  active  by  mental  training,  to  which  each  indi- 
vidual has  been  subjected  during  his  life  career.  The  cells 
thus  developed  prompt  his  thoughts,  deeds  and  acts.  They 
stimulate  his  desires  and  gather  strength  from  the  fre- 
quency of  their  use.  These  brain  cells  are  actuated  by 
mental  effort.  The  man  thinks,  and  the  thought  is  often 
the  father  of  the  deed.  The  oftener  a  man  thinks  of  doing 
a  certain  thing,  the  greater  is  his  desire  to  do  it,  provided 
it  can  be  done.  All  of  man's  thoughts  and  deeds  are  either 
for  right  or  for  wrong  doing.  Thoughts  and  deeds  for 
right  doing  should  be  strengthened  and  encouraged.    They 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  187 

mean  mental  and  physical  upbuilding,  both  to  the  man 
and  to  the  world.  Thoughts  and  deeds  for  wrong  doing 
have  a  contrary  effect.  They  destroy  both  mental  and  phys- 
ical health,  and  cause  individual  and  public  distress. 


188  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  FORTY-SEVEN 

THAT  SEEING  SPIRITS,  GHOSTS,  APPARITIONS,  OR  WRAITHS  OF 

DECEASED    RELATIVES      OR    OTHERS      WHO     HAVE    PASSED 

OUT     OF     MORTAL     LIFE     IS     A     MENTAL     DELUSION 

IT  would  first  be  proper  to  prove  that  there  is  such  a 
thing  as  a  spirit  or  ghost,  before  attempting  to  dis- 
credit that  probable  impossibility.  But  such  proof  can- 
not be  produced.  That  assertion  does  not  mean  that  cer- 
tain persons  do  not  see  spirits,  or  what  they  call  spirits. 
There  are  many  good,  reliable  people  who  honestly  believe 
that  they  are  permitted  to  see  and  commune  with  departed 
friends,  and  others  who  have  gone  into  the  great  unknown. 
Spiritualism,  under  such  circumstances,  is  a  delicate  sub- 
ject to  deal  with,  but  it  is  connected  with  mental  science 
in  such  a  way  that  it  should  be  carefully  considered. 

Seeing  spirits  is  a  mental  delusion,  and  all  mechanical 
and  physical  evidence  of  their  existence,  as  demonstrated 
by  mediums,  is  an  undoubted  deception.  Various  claims  are 
made  by  people  who  see  spirits  as  to  their  appearance  in 
ethereal  existence.  Some  see  them  garbed  in  white  robes, 
apparently  as  angels.  Others  view  them  in  earthly  gar- 
ments, such  as  were  worn  in  mortal  life  by  those  who  have 
been  materialized.  Usually  these  spirits  look  as  they  did 
when  on  earth.  Sometimes  they  appear  to  have  grown  in 
age  and  stature,  but  they  are  always  well  and  happy,  and 
appear  from  their  messages  to  friends  to  be  contented. 

The  thought  that  loved  friends  are  permitted  to  see  and 
communicate  with  us  after  death,  is  inspiring  and  welcome 
to  most  mortals.  It  is  beautiful,  sweet  and  consoling.  But 
on  the  other  hand  there  are  people  who  would  prefer  not 
to  have  their  deceased  relatives,  or  in  fact  any  other  spirits, 
see  what  they  are  doing  here  on  earth.  Spiritualism,  then, 
is  not  always  a  welcome  belief. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  189 

There  may  be  an  aura,  or  other  spirit  semblance  em- 
bodied in  our  beings,  which  will  be  set  free  to  float  on 
the  ethereal  after  death.  If  so,  no  scientific  investigation, 
or  other  effort  to  find  it  in  our  bodies  during  life,  or  reveal 
its  departure  when  the  breath  left  the  body,  has  been  suc- 
cessful. Surely,  there  is  no  element  in  the  flesh,  blood,  bone 
and  sinews  that  compose  our  bodily  belongings,  that  would 
indicate  a  spiritual  presence.  The  mentality,  to  which  we 
owe  life  and  mental  and  physical  activity,  is  a  physical  func- 
tion, actuated  by  brain  and  nerve  cells.  Such  a  place  would 
not  be  a  suitable  habitation  for  a  spirit.  Where,  then,  does 
the  spirit  dwell  that  comes  back  to  earth  and  claims  to  be 
our  counterpart? 

As  was  previously  stated,  seeing  spirits  is  a  mental  de- 
lusion. There  are  no  spirits  to  be  seen.  The  spirits  that 
people  think  they  see  are  either  figments  of  the  imagina- 
tion, or  are  deceptions  contrived  by  alleged  mediums.  Fic- 
tions of  the  brain  cells,  or  freaks  of  the  imagination,  are 
common  mental  disturbances  and  should  not  attract  serious 
attention.  But  when  they  concoct  or  create  spirit  delusions 
of  departed  friends,  it  is  time  to  look  into  the  matter.  A 
man  stricken  with  delirium  tremens  sees  fancied  spirits, 
other  than  those  he  has  been  drinking.  These  spirits  are 
sometimes  snakes,  queer-shaped  animals,  horrible  scenes, 
and  other  freaks  of  a  disordered  mentality.  Insanity  brings 
on  similar  hallucinations  not  necessary  to  explain.  Then, 
there  are  milder  forms  of  mental  disorders  in  which  the 
persons  are  afflicted  with  manias  of  various  kinds.  Some  of 
them  are  of  a  harmless  nature.  It  is  to  this  class  that  peo- 
ple who  see  spirits  should  be  assigned.  Generally  speaking, 
all  such  people  are  of  a  nervous  temperament  and  are  likely 
to  see  ghosts  in  the  dark.  They  patronize  mediums,  clair- 
voyants and  fortune  tellers,  and  are  liberal  patrons  of 
everything  that  deals  in  mysticism  and  superstition. 

People  who  see  spirits  are  not  always  mentally  unbal- 
anced. There  are  many  persons  who  do  not  see  spirits  who 


190      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

are  freaky  in  other  ways,  and  who  are  looked  upon  as 
brilliant  examples  of  mental  brightness.  Seeing  spirits,  or 
any  other  unreality,  is  inviting  mental  trouble.  It  may 
become  a  habit  that  will  end  in  serious  consequences.  The 
mind  should  be  trained  to  consider  nothing  but  realities. 
Seeing  spirits  is  a  freak  of  the  imagination  that  seems  a 
reality,  until  analyzed  by  good  common  sense.  The  thought 
that  a  loved  relative  in  spirit  form  should  witness  some  of 
our  earthly  escapades  ought  to  put  an  end  to  such  non- 
sense. God  would  not  allow  spirits  to  dwell  on  earth  after 
their  mortal  experience  here.  He  would  send  them  to 
higher  realms,  if  there  is  such  a  thing  as  spirits.  Until 
everyone  is  permitted  to  see  the  ghosts  of  departed  ones, 
instead  of  restricting  that  privilege  to  nervous,  imagina- 
tive people  and  mediums,  let  us  decide  that  there  are  no 
spirits. 

Another  peculiar  form  of  belief  is  that  of  communicat- 
ing with  spirits  by  table-tipping,  rapping,  slate-writing, 
ouija  boards  and  similar  contrivances.  Spirits  are  sup- 
posed to  be  divested  of  physical  forms  and  functions,  and 
to  be  composed  principally  of  thin  air  or  some  other  ethereal 
wraith  or  form.  They  could  not  have  much  strength  with 
which  to  handle  heavy  furniture,  utter  groans  and  do  other 
things  where  physical  force  is  needed.  But  this  incon- 
gruity is  easily  explained  by  spiritualists.  Granting  that 
every  mortal  that  passes  into  the  great  unknown  is  invested 
with  an  ethereal  form,  it  would  seem  that  the  numberless 
spirits  of  the  departed  since  the  beginning  would  so  fill 
the  atmospheric  belt  surrounding  the  earth  that  we  would 
be  troubled  to  secure  air  for  breathing  purposes.  It  might 
be  said  that  spirits  are  permitted  to  travel  to  the  other 
worlds  in  the  universe.  That  being  true  there  would  be 
some  very  long  trips.  It  requires  six  thousands  years  for 
a  ray  of  light  to  traverse  the  space  between  this  world  and 
a  planet  or  star  recently  discovered  by  astronomers  in  their 
exhaustive  search  for  new  developments  in  the  universe. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  191 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  FORTY-EIGHT 

THAT  CHRIST  WAS  THE  GREATEST  EXEMPLAR  OF  THE  PRAYER 

METHOD  OF  SELF-DEVELOPMENT,  AND  HIS  EXAMPLE 

SHOULD    BE    STRICTLY    FOLLOWED    BY    ALL 

PERSONS  DESIROUS  OF  DOING  RIGHT 

TWO  thousand  years  ago  Christ,  known  as  the  Son  of 
God,  was  bom.  Twenty-five  hundred  years  have 
elapsed  since  Siddartha,  the  Hindu,  gave  Buddhism 
to  the  world,  and  fourteen  hundred  years  have  transpired 
since  Mohammed,  a  Koreish  camel  driver,  founded  Islam, 
or  Mohammedism.  At  that  time  civilization,  as  we  know  it, 
was  in  its  infancy.  Astronomy,  geology,  anthropology,  sur- 
gery, medicine  and  practically  all  of  the  arts  and  sciences 
were  unknown  to  the  people  of  twenty  centuries  ago.  The 
ocean  was  believed  to  be  inhabited  by  amphibean  monsters. 
Giants,  fairies,  goblins,  ghosts  and  evil  spirits  were  thought 
to  be  in  existence,  and  compared  to  our  present  civilization 
the  districts  in  which  the  three  great  religions  were  founded 
were  like  small  islands  in  size  and  area  located  in  a  vast 
sea  of  barbaric  vice  and  ignorance.  In  that  remote  age 
incidents  and  events  not  readily  explainable  by  natural 
causes  were  attributed  to  supernatural  influences.  Heav- 
enly phenomena  which  now  attract  little  or  no  attention 
were  then  believed  to  be  warnings  from  God.  Supposed 
miracles  were  of  common  occurence,  and  superstition 
aroused  by  ignorance  was  a  dominant  feature  of  public 
and  private  thought.  Wise  men  were  regarded  as  prophets 
and  seers,  and  as  there  was  no  other  means  of  circulating 
information  of  the  various  events  that  transpired,  these 
mentors  of  public  knowledge  took  the  place  of  our  modern 
printing  presses  and  newspapers. 

The  birth  and  career  of  Christ  seem  to  have  been  accom- 
panied by  more  miracle  happenings  than  announced  the 


192      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

founding  of  the  other  two  great  religions.  An  angel  and 
the  star  of  Bethlehem  proclaimed  the  birth  of  the  Son  of 
God,  and  from  the  time  Christ  began  his  work  as  a  minister 
of  the  Gospel  until  the  time  he  was  said  to  have  been  taken 
up  bodily  by  angels  from  the  tomb  in  which  his  remains 
had  been  deposited  after  the  crucifixion,  Christ's  life  was 
a  history  of  miraculous  events.  It  is  claimed  that  these 
miracles  were  demonstrations  of  the  God-like  power  in- 
vested in  Christ,  and  were  shown  as  evidence  of  his  saintly 
existence.  Such  evidence  is  not  needed  to  convince  readers 
of  the  scriptures  of  the  unexampled  excellence  of  the  great 
Redeemer*  Had  the  miracle  happenings  and  the  impossible 
conception  and  resurrection  of  Christ  been  omitted  from  the 
history  of  his  life,  the  good  work  of  the  Redeemer  would 
have  been  more  acceptable  to  many  modem  readers. 

Were  it  possible  for  Christ  to  appear  on  earth  today  it 
would  not  be  as  the  Son  of  God,  and  there  would  not  be 
any  miraculous  events  to  publish.  He  would  be  given  birth 
and  be  educated  in  the  ordinary  way  all  mankind  are 
brought  into  the  world  and  developed.  And  when  his  great 
mind  had  been  filled  with  the  necessary  knowledge  he  would 
then  began  a  crusade  against  inordinate  greed,  igno- 
ance  and  wrong  doing  that  would  shake  the  founda- 
tions of  our  social  and  political  structure  with  fear  and 
trembling.  Christ  was  an  extraordinary  man  in  every  sense 
of  the  word.  He  was  sincere,  true,  faithful  and  earnest  in 
thought  and  deed.  His  sublime  teachings  and  precepts  have 
done  more  to  civilize  humanity  than  has  all  other  human 
effort  combined.  His  career  was  short  and  glorious,  and 
he  laid  the  fundament  of  a  religion  that  is  destined  to  be- 
come a  world-wide  belief  with  unbounded  salutary  influ- 
ences. Christ  was  a  mortal,  a  man  of  wonderful  mental 
ability.  His  God-like  attributes  were  natural,  and  were  de- 
veloped free  from  the  influences  and  temptations  that  beset 
most  men  who  become  evil-doers  to  a  greater  or  less  degree. 
The  mental  training  of  Christ  was  of  an  upward  trend.   In 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  193 

early  life  he  must  have  been  deeply  interested  in  the  wel- 
fare of  his  fellow  beings,  and  that  interest  caused  him  to 
become  a  public  exponent  of  right  doing  in  every  phase  of 
that  righteous  declaration.  It  should  be  remembered  that 
Christ  lived  in  an  age  when  right  doing  was  an  exception. 
The  man  who  could  openly  defy  and  denounce  wrong  doing 
in  that  evil  period  would  not  only  be  considered  a  striking 
example  of  the  principles  which  he  advocated,  and  for 
which  he  lived,  but  he  also  would  be  made  to  suffer  the 
consequences  of  his  open  defiance. 

Look  the  truth  in  the  face  and  make  the  best  of  it.  There 
is  no  personal  God,  and  the  life  and  death  of  Christ  is 
evidence  of  that  fact.  There  has  never  been  an  impregna- 
tion of  a  woman  by  divine  conception.  Such  a  thing  would 
not  be  possible.  Christ  was  a  human  being  endowed  with 
a  wonderful  mentality  capable  of  development  for  right 
doing  to  an  extraordinary  degree.  There  was  no  divine 
mind  for  healing  diseases  during  the  time  of  Christ,  nor 
has  there  ever  been  such  a  thing.  There  are  no  super- 
natural influences  for  the  purpose  of  performing  miracles, 
helping  spirits  to  materialize,  giving  rappings  and  other 
unnatural  doings.  There  positively  is  no  way  for  the  human 
mind  to  be  dealt  with,  actuated  or  influenced  except  by  the 
means  provided  by  nature.  It  would  be  as  difficult  for  one 
person  to  read  or  to  actuate  thought  in  the  mind  of  an- 
other person  as  it  would  be  to  inject  life  into  the  stump  of 
a  tree  with  a  syringe.  Study  the  causes  of  thought,  the 
physical  construction  of  a  brain  organism,  the  character 
and  uses  of  brain  cell  tissue,  the  anatomy  of  man  and  the 
functions  of  the  sympathetic  and  cerebro-spinal  systems, 
and  you  will  agree  with  the  above  stated  propositions.  Man 
is  an  animal  in  structure,  component  parts  and  methods  of 
existence.  He  is  a  creature  of  procreation,  birth,  life,  death 
and  dissolution  by  natural  methods.  There  could  be  no 
deviation  from  this  immutable,  inexorable  law  of  nature. 
God  has  no  more  to  do  with  controlling  the  incidents  and 


194      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

vicissitudes  of  human  life  than  He  has  with  governing  the 
swell  of  the  ocean,  or  the  growth  of  a  flower,  or  anything 
else  in  nature. 

Christ  developed  his  mentality  in  the  same  way  every 
human  being  must  or  should  acquire  strength  and  ability  for 
right  doing.  It  is  stated  in  the  scriptures  that  Christ  pleaded 
for  God's  strength  when  on  the  cross.  Prayer  was  un- 
doubtedly the  uplifting  force  that  stimulated  the  develop- 
ment of  Christ's  mentality.  We  may  not  all  possess  the 
wonderful  cellular  activities  that  caused  Christ  to  be  such 
a  marvelous  example  of  right  doing,  but  we  can  all  help 
ourselves  to  become  better  men  and  women  by  adopting  and 
using  the  same  influence,  prayer,  that  Christ  advocated  as 
a  means  of  salvation. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  195 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   FORTY-NINE 

THAT  DEFORMED  AND  CRIPPLED  PEOPLE  WHO  CAME  INTO  THE 
WORLD      IN      THAT      CONDITION      ARE      NOT      RESPONSIBLE 
FOR      THEIR      MISFORTUNES,      AND      THAT      IT      IS      THE 
DUTY     OF      EVERY      PERSON      TO      MAKE     THEIR     BUR- 
DENS   AS    LIGHT    AS    POSSIBLE    BY    SHOWING    THEM 
ATTENTION,    AND    BY   ASSISTING   THEM    TO   LOOK 
ON   THE  BRIGHT  SIDE  OF  LIFE 

FEW  people  escape  misfortune  in  some  form  or  nature. 
It  frequently  befalls  us  when  least  expected,  and 
then  the  blow  seems  more  serious.  But  the  most 
painful  and  distressing  misfortune  is  that  of  being  bom 
crippled,  or  deformed.  To  come  into  the  world  in  such 
a  lamentable  condition  is  to  be  doomed  to  a  sad,  melancholy 
life.  Such  a  fate  should  awaken  sympathy  for  the  victim, 
and  cause  an  especial  effort  to  Hghten  the  burden  of  the 
unfortunate  person,  should  such  a  thing  be  possible.  To 
be  misshapen  even  slightly  is  a  misfortune  that  weighs  on 
the  mind  and  creates  mental  distress.  Self -comparison  with 
shapely  and  good-looking,  well  developed  people  is  always 
a  punishment,  worse  than  could  be  inflicted  by  ordinary 
means.  Then,  there  is  the  never  ceasing,  always  evident 
regret  for  having  been  unsightly,  and  unfit  for  social  hon- 
ors. Unforttmately,  a  person  physically  deformed  usually 
possesses  a  misdirected  intellect.  It  could  not  be  otherwise. 
Constantly  brooding  over  a  misfortune,  must  necessarily 
train  the  mind  accordingly.  We  seldom  find  sunshine  in 
mental  gloom.  There  could  not  be  genuine  joy  where 
sorrow  prevails. 

It  is  natural  for  us  to  admire  beauty,  manly  strength, 
and  physical  fitness  of  any  kind.  A  beautiful  girl  is  almost 
worshipped.  The  big,  manly  athlete  becomes  a  great  favor- 
ite, and  the  poor  cripple,  whose  only  attribute  is  his  men- 


196      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

tality,  passes  unnoticed,  or  with  only  a  glance  of  contempt. 
There  have  been  cripples  and  deformed  people  who  have 
overcome  the  shock  of  their  misfortunes  and  have  developed 
into  active,  prominent,  reputable  citizens,  not  because  of 
their  deformity,  but  for  the  reason  that  their  mentalities 
were  not  deformed.  The  mentality  makes  the  man.  His 
bodily  belongings  do  not  control,  or  influence  his  conduct. 
Success  does  not  wear  a  beautiful  face,  or  display  a  manly 
form.  It  is  not  a  pink  tea  acquisition,  or  a  favored  exhibit 
at  a  beauty  show.  Success  in  any  walk  of  life  must  be  won 
by  mental  endeavor.  The  successful  person  may  have  an 
ugly  countenance,  or  be  hunch-backed,  but  his  mentality 
will  be  worth  having,  because  it  develops  good  sense,  men- 
tal vigor  and  successful  thoughts  and  deeds.  That  is  why 
we  should  encourage  crippled  and  deformed  people,  and 
help  them  win  life's  battles.  A  little  sunshine  in  the  way  of 
a  smile  of  recognition  or  a  short  pleasant  talk  would  dispel 
much  of  the  mental  gloom  caused  by  their  misfortune. 

Answer  this  vital  question.  If  we  are  controlled  by  a 
personal  God,  who  watches  over  our  welfare,  why  does  He 
permit  unfortunate  cripples  and  deformed  infants  to  be  bom 
into  the  world?  There  are  many  similar  queries  that  could 
be  suggested,  but  the  one  of  permitting  unfortunates  to 
come  into  the  world,  not  of  their  own  volition,  but  by  the 
consent  of  a  personal  God,  seems  to  be  the  most  important. 
The  proper  answer  to  the  question  is  that  frequently  it  is  the 
fault  of  the  parents.  But  if  we  have  a  personal  God,  who 
lends  His  efforts  to  money-makers,  to  divine  healers,  to 
spiritual  mediums,  to  people  who  pray  to  him  and  rely  on 
His  supernatural  power,  why  should  this  same  God  suffer 
little  crippled  and  deformed  children  to  be  bom,  and  become 
objects  of  pity  and  repulsiveness.  Look  at  life,  God's  in- 
fluence, and  all  else  connected  with  earthly  creations  from 
a  common  sense  viewpoint.  There  is  no  personal  God,  no 
supernatural  influence,  no  power  except  our  own  that  pro- 
creates, or  that  controls  and  influences  our  earthly  welfare. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  197 

We  may  go  into  a  church  and  see  that  it  is  painted  white. 
How  long  would  a  preacher  have  to  pray  to  change  the 
color,  unless  repainted  by  the  hand  of  man?  There  is  no 
difference  between  praying  for  help  to  stop  the  ravages  of 
war,  or  of  sin,  or  anything  else,  and  praying  to  change  the 
color  of  the  church.  They  are  all  of  a  physical  nature,  and 
so  is  everything  else  in  creation.  Our  mentalities  are  phys- 
ical thinking  machines.  The  brain  of  a  horse,  or  a  dog 
or  a  cat  is  not  capable  of  thinking;  but  the  five  senses 
arouse  its  activities  in  the  same  manner  the  five  senses 
actuate  our  mentalities.  The  only  difference  between  our 
mentalities  and  the  brain  organs  of  other  vertebrates  is  that 
we  possess  the  sense  of  intellectuaHty. 


198  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  FIFTY 

THAT  THERE  IS  A  METHOD  OF  REGENERATING  THE   MENTAL- 
ITY   THAT  WILL  FREE  IT  FROM  THE  CONTROL  OF  BAD 
HABITS    AND  CAUSE  ITS  POSSESSOR  TO  RECOVER 
HIS  MENTAL  STRENGTH  AND  VIGOR 

THOSE  of  US  who  have  overindulged  our  desires  for 
fast  living,  or  who  have  acquired  habits  that  threaten 
our  comfort,  health  and  happiness,  may  find  a  way 
to  overcome  the  cause  of  our  troubles  by  recovering  the 
control  of  our  mentalities.  The  method  to  be  employed, 
when  explained,  will  seem  simple  and  easy,  but  it  will  re- 
quire fortitude  and  stamina  to  continue  and  cause  the 
method  to  accomplish  its  purpose.  Overcoming  and  aban- 
doning bad  habits  is  like  segregating  ourselves  from  a  part 
of  our  existence.   It  is  easier  to  contemplate  than  to  do. 

It  has  been  claimed,  several  times,  in  this  series  of  prop- 
ositions that  the  mentality  is  the  man.  In  the  process  for 
regenerating  a  mentality,  that  part  of  it  which  prompts 
wrong  doing  must  be  subjugated,  and  its  ability  to  influence 
the  man  to  do  wrong  must  be  subdued.  Bad  habits  are  a 
serious  form  of  wrong  doing.  A  man  may  steal  or  commit 
almost  any  form  of  crime  without  impairing  his  health. 
On  the  contrary^  bad  habits  are  an  insidious  practice  and 
not  only  impair  physical  health,  but  also  destroy  men- 
tal vigor  and  bring  on  infirmities  that  might  have  been 
avoided.  Ridding  one's  self  of  bad  habits  necessitates  the 
overcoming  of  influences  that  have  become  fixtures  in  both 
mind  and  body,  and,  therefore,  it  is  a  task  that  requires 
patience  and  self-denial,  attributes  seldom  possessed  by 
people  who  have  lost  self-control  by  submitting  to  the  in- 
fluence of  bad  habits. 

Changing  a  mental  control  for  wrong  doing,  and  upbuild- 
ing an  influence  for  right  doing    that  will  dominate  the 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  199 

workings  of  mentality,  are  accomplished  by  strengthening  a 
desire  for  right  living,  right  thinking  and  right  doing. 
Thought,  desires,  impulses,  acts  and  deeds  are  creations 
of  mental  effort,  mental  force.  These  creations  may  be 
developed  for  right  or  for  wrong  doing.  They  may  upbuild 
our  welfare,  or  they  may  destroy  it.  That  depends  upon 
our  mental  control.  If  our  mentalities  are  controlled  for 
wrong  doing,  as  is  done  when  we  are  victims  of  bad  habits, 
then  both  mental  and  physical  health  are  in  danger.  When 
we  do  right,  the  conditions  are  altered.  The  desire  to  in- 
dulge bad  habits,  like  other  forms  of  wrong  doing,  has  been 
overcome  by  creating  a  better,  stronger  desire  for  right 
doing. 

Life  is  the  Creator,  to  the  best  of  our  knowledge,  of  all 
things  in  existence.  It  may  be  our  God,  whom  we  worship, 
our  Heavenly  Father,  to  whom  we  offer  prayers,  our  Divine 
Being,  or  the  Divine  or  Infinite  Mind.  That  is  neither  here 
nor  there.  We  understand  and  know  life.  We  also  under- 
stand and  know  that  without  life  we  could  not  exist,  and 
it  is  to  life,  as  our  God,  that  we  should  bend  our  knees  and 
implore  assistance  to  overcome  wrong  doing.  Also,  for 
mental  and  physical  strength  and  vigor,  that  we  may  achieve 
our  own  good  fortune.  Prayer  that  is  devout,  sincere,  earn- 
est and  honest  must  be  our  means  of  beseeching  strength 
and  guidance.  Prayer  will  upbuild  and  strengthen  a  desire 
for  right  doing.  It  will  create  a  mental  ability  to  abandon 
bad  habits,  and  it  will  afford  strength  to  recover  our  own 
self-respect.  We  shall  not  be  disappointed  when  entering 
upon  a  campaign  of  prayer  for  strength  to  do  right,  if  that 
campaign  is   fought  vigorously,  earnestly  and  honestly. 


200  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER    FIFTY-ONE 

THAT  DREAMS  ARE  MENTAL  ACTIVITIES  NOT  UNDER  GOOD  CON- 
TROL.     THEY    ARE    MEANINGLESS    EXCEPT    IN    ONE    PAR- 
TICULAR:    THEY    INDICATE    DISORDERS     IN     ONE    OR 
MORE   OF   OUR   DIGESTIVE^    CIRCULATORY, 
OR  RESPIRATORY  FUNCTIONS 

DREAMS  are  nothing  but  rambling  thoughts  not  under 
effective  control.  We  dream  when  in  a  semi-con- 
scious state,  and  in  our  waking  moments.  We  could 
not  dream  when  asleep.  The  mentality  at  that  time  is  dor- 
mant, except  such  of  its  activities  as  involuntarily  control 
the  functions  of  the  organs  of  respiration,  circulation  and 
digestion.  These  cellular  activities  are  governed  by  what  is 
known  as  our  sympathetic  nervous  system.  The  mental,  or 
thought  activities  that  do  the  dreaming,  when  not  under 
proper  control,  belong  to  the  cerebro-spinal  system,  which 
presides  over  the  animal  functions  of  sensation,  motion  and 
intellect  and  comprises  all  the  nervous  or  cellular  or- 
gans concerned  in  sensation,  volition  and  mental  action.  The 
cerebro-spinal  system  is  dormant  when  we  sleep.  Should 
we  dream,  it  is  because  the  respiratory,  circulatory,  or  digest- 
ive organs  of  the  sympathetic  system  do  not  function  prop- 
erly, and  they  keep  the  thought  activities  disturbed.  People 
who  think  that  dreams  have  a  meaning  are  right  in  one  par- 
ticular. It  is  time  to  send  for  a  doctor.  The  cause  may  be 
a  bad  heart  action,  trouble  in  breathing,  or  indigestion  or 
failure  to  assimilate  food. 

Dreams  should  be  relegated  to  the  category  of  the  im- 
possible or  supernatural  mental  creations.  There  could  be 
no  dreaming,  no  semi-conscious  state,  no  rambling  thought 
if  the  organs  of  our  nervous  system  functioned  properly. 
There  is  nothing  in  a  dream    but  lack  of  mental  control. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  201 

Were  it  not  for  an  ability  to  control  our  mental  activities 
we  would  be  constantly  dreaming.  Imagination  or  day 
dreaming  is  naught  but  thought-wandering,  guided  by  a 
willing  mental  control,  which  enables  us  to  take  a  fancied 
trip  to  heaven  and  back  in  less  than  two  seconds,  if  our  time 
is  limited.  Semi-comatose  dreams  are  imaginative  flicker- 
ings  without  the  guidance  of  the  willing  mental  control. 
They  never  disturb  us  when  there  is  mental  force  to  keep 
our  thoughts  from  wandering,  and  a  dream  may  seem  a 
night-time  long  when  it  results  from  the  effort  of  a  digestive 
organ  to  rid  an  overfilled  stomach  of  a  fat,  hearty  supper. 

It  seems  like  an  indeterminable  task  to  divest  ourselves  of 
the  impression  that  the  mind  is  guided  by  an  unknown 
influence,  and  that  thought  is  always  the  forerunner  of 
misfortune.  Dreams  and  impressions  exercise  a  baneful  in- 
fluence on  many  lives.  As  a  matter  of  fact  they  are  harm- 
less fancies  in  most  instances,  and  should  never  be  given 
credit  for  being  anything  more  than  the  offshoots  of  floating 
thought.  That  statement  does  not  refer  to  conclusions 
drawn  from  mental  comparison  and  study  of  specified  sub- 
jects. We  are  considering  dreams,  either  semi-conscious  or 
freaks  of  the  imagination,  both  of  which  create  impressions 
and  are  frequently  taken  for  guides  to  control  our  conduct. 

Cellular  activities,  from  which  we  derive  thought,  result 
from  mental  development  and  training.  This  development 
and  training  dates  back  to  the  creation  of  man,  and  has 
been  brought  forward  to  the  present  time,  and  will  con- 
tinue to  be  brought  forward  by  the  process  of  procreation 
as  long  as  man  exists.  The  germ  of  life  impregnated  by 
parents,  and  which  gives  existence  to  children,  comprises 
all  the  elements  of  ancestral  development  not  extinguished 
by  former  mental  training.  In  short,  the  brain  organism 
which  we  inherit  contains  the  mental  records  of  our  lives, 
and  these  records  may  only  be  changed  by  our  individual 
effort.  We  may  become  better  or  worse  people  than  were 
our  ancestors.   That  will  depend  on  our  own  mental  train- 


202      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

ing  and  the  manner  in  which  the  cells  of  our  inherited  brain 
organisms  are  developed. 

During  the  countless  ages  of  ancestral  training,  thought 
and  other  intellectual  functions  have  been  upbuilded  from 
a  primal  state  to  their  present  highly  developed  condition. 
Physical  functions  have  not  reached  so  high  a  degree  of  de- 
velopment, because  of  their  natural  restrictions.  But  by  a 
long  process  of  training  our  movements  have  been  made 
more  graceful,  and  our  forms,  figures  and  methods  of  living 
are  more  pleasing  and  satisfactory.  There  has  been  nothing 
unnatural,  extraordinary  or  mysterious  in  this  upgrowth 
and  development  of  man.  It  has  been  gradual,  steady  and 
normal.  Generations  have  progressed  in  physical  and  men- 
tal attainments  in  the  same  manner  that  individuals  acquire 
learning  and  physical  accomplishments  during  mortal  exist- 
ence. Each  generation  has  taken  care  of  itself,  and  then 
handed  down  to  its  successors  the  fruits  of  its  endeavors 
by  means  of  procreation.  Among  the  benefactions  transmit- 
ted in  this  way  have  been  our  thought  functions,  our  men- 
tal activities  and  the  means  of  controlling  them. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  203 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER    FIFTY-TWO 

THAT    ALL     PROPHECIES    AND    PREDICTIONS     NOT    BASED    ON 
MATHEMATICAL  CALCULATIONS  OR  RELIABLE,  FIRST- 
HAND   INFORMATION    ARE    PURELY    GUESS- 
WORK   AND    A    WASTE    OF     MEN- 
TAL ENERGY 

THE  old-time  prophets,  who  once  thrived  on  earth, 
have  either  died  or  have  lost  their  hold  on  the  public 
since  the  advent  of  the  telegraph,  telephone,  rapid 
transit,  and  other  facilities  for  obtaining  quick  service  on 
information.  Occasionally  a  zealot  will  figure  out  a  predic- 
tion, after  consulting  biblical  traditions,  and  will  have  it 
published.  By  the  time  the  dire  happening  is  to  take  place, 
the  zealot  and  the  public  have  lost  interest  in  the  predic- 
tion, and  the  pesky  thing  never  comes  true.  Now  and  then, 
another  breed  of  prophets  rises  up  and  fixes  the  date  for 
the  world  to  come  to  an  end.  But  the  world  keeps  moving 
on  just  the  same,  and  the  mental  spasm  of  the  prophet-seers 
is  soon  forgotten.  When  the  world  comes  to  an  end,  there 
will  be  very  few  prophets  left  to  witness  the  spectacle.  Man 
will  have  been  very  dead  before  that  event,  so  dead  that 
there  will  be  no  need  for  a  funeral.  Nothwithstanding  pre- 
dictions to  the  contrary,  the  world  will  continue  to  exist 
many,  many  more  centuries,  unless  scientists  who  have  been 
studying  its  progress  and  probable  future  are  badly  mis- 
taken. Meantime  man  will  be  climbing  upward  in  physical 
and  mental  worth.  He  will  stop  listening  to  false  prophets 
and  other  humbugs  who  deal  in  the  supernatural,  and  pay 
more  attention  to  stem  realities. 

The  prophets  that  seem  in  greatest  favor  are  those  men- 
tioned in  the  bible.  Students  of  that  sacred  volume  are  con- 
stantly referring  to  Daniel,  Elijah  and  others  of  biblical 
fame  whenever  some  great  event  transpires  to  see  if  these 


204      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

happenings  were  not  predicted.  There  have  been  prophecies 
and  prophets,  predictions  and  seers,  since  man  has  been  able 
to  think  and  devise.  The  bible  age  is  not  an  exception  to 
this  general  rule.  But  prophecies  are  not  so  popular  in  this 
day  of  greater  and  more  advanced  intellectual  attainment. 
Modern  people  think  for  themselves,  and  do  not  rely  on  the 
forecast  of  events  by  self-affirmed  prophets.  Bible  students 
who  have  convinced  themselves  that  every  word  in  that 
work  is  truth  irrefutable  should  endeavor  to  think  that 
there  are  brighter  minds  and  better  means  of  employing 
thought  today  than  there  were  in  bible  times.  To  be  con- 
stantly living  in  the  past  is  not  a  commendable  feature  of 
any  person's  life.  The  bible  is  the  work  of  men  who  existed 
thousands  of  years  ago.  They  were  then  controlled  and  in- 
fluenced by  conditions  that  would  be  impossible  in  this  day 
and  age.  Prophecies  in  bible  days  were  a  means  of  attract- 
ing public  attention,  and  of  intimidating  and  coercing  certain 
people.  Prophecies  were  methods  of  accomplishing  desired 
results.  Today,  prophecies  exercise  no  influence  except  over 
ignorant  minds. 

It  is  difficult  to  convince  most  people  that  bible  lore  is 
entirely  human  thought.  The  impression  prevails  that  it  is 
divine  inspiration,  and  that  a  personal  God  influenced  the 
authors  of  its  contents.  Nothing  could  be  further  from  fact. 
If  God  inspires  worthy,  instructive,  uplifting  thought  and 
deeds,  a  contrary  destructive  influence  must  also  cause 
man  to  destroy  both  himself  and  God's  creations  whenever 
that  influence  sees  fit  to  control  him.  To  put  the  question 
plainly,  man  must  necessarily  be  under  the  control  of  either 
God  or  Satan.  There  is  neither  reason  nor  good  sense  in 
such  a  proposition.  To  affirm  that  the  Creator  of  the  uni- 
verse is  in  constant  conflict  for  the  control  of  man's  men- 
tality is  an  insult  to  the  author  of  our  existence.  God  did 
not  inspire  the  bible,  nor  does  He  influence  human  thought. 
Prophecies  and  predictions  of  every  kind  are  creations  of 
mental  activities.    The  same  may  be  said  of  every  word 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  205 

printed  in  the  bible.  That  statement  does  not  signify  that 
such  parts  of  the  bible  as  relate  to  right  living  and  right 
doing  should  not  be  considered  as  a  rule  and  guide  for  our 
conduct.  The  bible  is  a  good  book,  but  its  prophecies  are 
no  more  valuable  or  reliable  than  the  statements  of  any 
other  intelligent  publication. 


206  FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 


PROPOSITION    NUMBER    FIFTY-THREE 

THAT    WE    MUST    BANISH    SUPERSTITION    AND    THOUGHTS    OF 
ATTAINING  IMMORTALITY  BY  LUCK  OR  CHANCE,  AND 
RESORT    TO    PRACTICAL    METHODS    AND    EF- 
FORTS TO  PREPARE  OURSELVES  FOR 
THE   GREAT   UNKNOWN 

FOR  evidence  of  the  satisfactory  methods  employed 
in  the  business  world  to  upbuild  and  develop  every 
branch  of  trade  known  to  commerce,  study  the  his- 
tory of  any  successful,  widely  known  concern,  and  it  will 
be  found  that  the  various  changes  and  improvements  that 
brought  about  the  prosperity  were  made  to  keep  pace  with 
the  progress,  conditions  and  mutations  of  the  times.  Men 
with  keen,  active,  practical  minds  are  continually  devising 
methods  and  means  to  meet  the  demands  created  by  these 
changes,  and  the  firm  or  house  that  fails  to  adopt  these 
improvements  to  supply  the  wants  of  customers  is  doomed 
to  loss  of  trade,  decadence  and  eventual  failure.  This  per- 
sistent upgrowth  of  business  wisdom  and  sagacity  does  not 
apply  to  the  practices  and  managerial  conduct  of  the  relig- 
ious world.  Scientific  research  and  investigation  have  dis- 
credited much  of  the  biblical  fiction,  and  the  good  sense  of 
many  people  has  discarded  as  impossible  the  claim  that 
God  protects  and  guides  us  during  mortal  life.  Recent 
thought  and  conviction  have  caused  other  people  to  cease 
church  worship  and  associate  themselves  with  semi- 
religious  fads  and  devotional  delusions,  because  they  felt 
that  the  old  church  practices  were  not  in  keeping  with 
modern  progress.  This  apparent  relapse  from  the  old-time 
religious  faith  could  not  have  become  so  popular  had  the 
claim  that  God  controls  us  been  a  fact.  Nor  would  it  ever 
have  existed  had  the  church  officials  revised  their  creeds 
and  doctrines  to  meet  modem  demands.    The  same  keen. 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  t07 

sagacious  business  sense  that  has  kept  the  business  world 
to  the  forefront  should  have  been  employed  in  keeping 
alive  and  active  the  church  organizations.  Old-fashioned 
buggies  do  not  sell  very  well  in  modem  times;  neither  is 
there  an  active  demand  for  the  old  hallelujah  sermons. 

The  mission  of  the  religious  organizations  of  today 
should  be  to  strengthen  public  and  personal  morals,  pre- 
serve peace  and  good  will  among  all  people,  assist  in  de- 
veloping educational  and  intellectual  influences,  revise  relig- 
ious teachings  that  they  may  conform  to  known  fact  and 
actual  conditions,  upbuild  sentiment  for  abstention  from 
excessive  indulgences,  extravagant  habits  and  the  accumu- 
lation of  immoderate  fortunes.  That  would  mean  nothing 
more  than  the  development  of  a  mind  for  right  doing.  When 
that  was  done  generally,  bad  habits  and  objectionable,  harm- 
ful practices  would  cease.  But  that  great  public  good  will 
never  come  as  long  as  churches  advocate  and  uphold  super- 
stition, misbelief  and  biblical  fiction.  That  part  of  the 
bible  which  relates  to  history,  fact,  and  the  upbuilding  of 
morals  should  be  retained  and  advocated  as  religious  decla- 
rations. All  else  should  be  suppressed  as  harmful  and  mis- 
leading. 

The  harm  done  by  advocating  a  belief  in  a  personal  God, 
who  with  His  only  begotten  Son  controls  and  guides  our 
mortal  existence,  is  almost  unexplainable.  That,  and  the 
christian  church  worship  of  apostles  and  saints,  together 
with  the  faith  in  a  spiritual  life,  are  the  cause  of  the  main- 
tenance of  many  forms  of  superstition,  belief  in  spirits,  for- 
tune telling,  christian  science,  clairvoyance,  telepathy,  mind 
reading  and  similar  mental  fabulations.  These  relapses 
from  sane  thought  also  encourage  a  belief  in  games  of 
chance,  lotteries  and  other  means  of  squandering  time,  op- 
portunity and  money.  There  is  likely  to  be  faith  in  luck, 
or  chance,  as  long  as  it  is  supported  by  religious  worship. 
Our  belief  in  God's  guidance  and  in  immortality  is  like 
taking  a  chance  on  these  events.    There  positively  is  no 


208-      FOR   THE   GOOD   OP  THE   WORLD 

method  of  substantiating  such  a  belief  either  by  fact  or 
experience.  Superstition  or  any  other  form  of  belief  in 
luck  or  chance  hinders  the  development  of  practical 
thought.  It  stagnates  the  mind  and  limits  mental  activity. 
Taking  a  chance  on  the  acquirement  of  anything  tangible 
or  intangible,  any  earthly  good  fortune,  or  any  spiritual  at- 
tainment is  like  putting  aside  opportunity  for  the  purpose  of 
trying  to  grasp  substance  from  the  air.  Nothing  but  dis- 
ease, death  and  heirlooms  fall  to  thoughtless,  impractical 
people.  Even  heaven  is  not  available  unless  we  prepare  our- 
selves for  the  transcendency,  and  that  would  mean  work 
and  self-denial.  There  will  be  no  luck  or  chance  in  winning 
immortality.  A  superstitious  belief  in  God's  guidance  and 
protection  will  not  fit  us  for  that  benefaction.  Nothing  but 
clean  lives  and  exemplary  habits  will  entitle  us  to  that 
final  glorification.  For  that  reason  we  must  resort  to  prac- 
tical thought  as  a  means  of  preparing  ourselves  for  the 
great  unknown,  unknowable  future. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  209 


PROPOSITION   NUMBER   FIFTY-FOUR 

THAT  CHANGES  ARE  NEEDED  IN  THE  CREEDS,  DOCTRINES  AND 
DECLARATIONS    OF    OUR    SEVERAL    RELIGIOUS    ORGANIZA- 
TIONS TO  ENABLE  THEM  TO  REGAIN  POPULAR  FAVOR 
AND  BECOME   INSTRUMENTS   OF  GREATER  GOOD 

IT  IS  not  necessary  to  consider  the  discontinuance  of 
radical  changing  of  any  form  of  religious  belief  when 
eradicating  faults  and  practices  that  render  it  unpopu- 
lar, or  that  cause  it  to  become  more  or  less  ineffective  in 
promoting  human  welfare.  A  religious  organization  that 
has  grown  in  strength  and  number,  and  which  can  be  made 
a  powerful  influence  for  common  good,  should  never  be 
disrupted.  But  there  are  times  in  the  existence  of  any 
belief,  or  religion,  when  popular  approval  must  be  won  by 
certain  changes  in  creed,  doctrine  and  practice,  or  there 
will  be  danger  of  its  dissolution.  The  three  great  religions, 
Christianity,  Islam  and  Buddhism,  are  faulty  in  practice 
and  conception,  and  therefore  need  correcting.  Buddhism 
does  not  recognize  a  Supreme  Creator,  or  God,  and  has  for 
its  chief  reason  for  existence  a  belief  in  the  transmigration 
of  souls  after  each  successive  mortality.  The  followers  of 
Islam,  or  Mohammedism,  believe  in  paradise  and  hell,  and 
that  there  will  be  a  general  resurrection.  All  Christians  wor- 
ship God,  and  believe  that  salvation  must  come  through 
Christ,  the  Son  of  Gk)d,  and  that  there  are  a  heaven  and  a 
hell.  In  all  probability  Islam,  or  "acceptance  of  the  divine 
will,"  as  it  is  interpreted,  was  copied  after  the  creeds  of 
both  the  Jewish  and  Christian  religions,  although  Moham- 
med regarded  Christ  as  a  prophet  and  apostle  in  the  same 
light  as  he  looked  upon  Abraham,  Moses  and  other  biblical 
patriarchs,  and  not  as  the  Son  of  God.  Islam  was  founded 
about  six  hundred  years  after  the  crucifixion  of  Christ. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  as  to  the  origin  of  the  three  great 


210       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

religions,  as  well  as  all  other  religious  beliefs.  Buddhism 
was  conceived  by  Siddhartha,  a  Hindu  prince,  about 
twenty-five  hundred  years  ago.  Islam  owes  its  existence  to 
Mohammed,  a  Koreish  camel  driver.  The  origin  of  Chris- 
tianity is  well  known  to  readers.  History  states  that  each 
of  these  religions  was  crude  and  rudimentary  when  first 
established,  and  that  changes  and  alterations  in  doctrine 
and  practice  have  been  made  to  meet  the  demands  of  fol- 
lowers as  time  elapsed.  But  the  fundamental  doctrine  or 
belief  has  not  been  tampered  with,  or  the  rehgion  would 
not  now  be  in  existence.  The  Buddhistic  belief  in  eternal 
life  by  means  of  procreation  seems  to  be  popular.  The 
theory  of  transmigration  of  souls  made  in  accordance  with 
the  mental  development  of  the  person  at  the  time  of  the 
demise  is  not  reasonable.  Should  the  person  be  worthy, 
his  soul  would  be  transferred  to  an  infant  capable  of 
being  developed  to  a  higher  state  of  being.  On  the  other 
hand,  if  the  life  of  the  person  was  bestial  and  unworthy 
the  soul  might  possibly  enter  into  animal  existence.  Islam 
is  made  popular  by  the  promise  of  joyful  immortal  tran- 
scendency, also  that  all  followers  who  sacrifice  Ufe  in  holy 
wars  are  immediately  transcended  to  that  happy  state  of 
eternal  joy.  Other  Mohammedans  must  take  their  chances 
of  pleasing  the  God  they  worship.  It  will  be  either  paradise 
or  hell  for  them.  Christianity  is  the  most  civilized  and 
acceptable  of  the  three  religions,  and  its  followers  repre- 
sent the  highest  type  of  the  human  race.  But  Christianity 
and  all  other  beliefs  and  doctrines  need  revising  that  un- 
reasonable, unbelievable  theories  may  be  eliminated.  Trans- 
migration of  souls,  paradise  with  its  eternal  joy,  and  heaven 
with  its  everlasting  bliss  are  pleasing  to  contemplate,  but 
they  are  figments  of  the  imagination  and  may  prove  to  be 
disappointments.  There  is  no  warranted  proof  of  their  ex- 
istence, although  there  is  room  in  the  great  universe  for 
both  heaven  and  hell. 
The  foundation,  underlying  principle,  and  main  support 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  211 

of  every  religious  belief  should  be  the  promotion  and  up- 
building of  individual  and  public  welfare.  The  immortal 
future  will  be  the  reward  of  mortal  worthiness  if  such  a 
state  of  existence  is  available.  Religions  that  promise  future 
transcendencies  are  not  reliable.  Mortal  life  has  its  limita- 
tions and  knowledge  of  a  future  existence  is  beyond  our 
comprehension.  A  personal  God  that  would  inspire  pro- 
phecies, transfer  souls,  make  angels  out  of  Mohammedans 
who  had  killed  Christians,  or  send  an  angel  to  con- 
ceive a  woman  that  a  divine  son  might  be  born  would 
long  since  have  given  us  information  about  heaven  and 
hell,  were  such  a  thing  possible.  To  be  consistent  and  sensi- 
ble we  should  put  aside  thought  and  belief  in  God's  assist- 
ance, guidance,  control  or  position  in  mankind's  affairs, 
and  busy  ourselves  with  working  out  methods  and  plans 
for  our  own  salvation.  God  does  not,  has  not,  and  will  not 
communicate  with  us  in  any  shape,  form  or  manner.  As 
mortals  we  are  in  supreme  control  of  earthly  creations,  and 
the  progress,  upbuilding  and  welfare  of  these  creations 
depend  on  our  own  mental  development  for  right  doing. 
When  we  do  right  and  are  happy,  peaceful  and  contented, 
other  earthly  creations  will  add  their  bounties  to  enlarge 
and  strengthen  the  volume  of  our  own  prosperity.  This 
mental  upgrowth  for  the  good  of  the  world  will  receive 
God's  sanction.  It  was  His  endowment  of  a  super-intellect 
at  the  time  of  our  creation  that  has  given  us  possession  of 
the  world. 

Religious  belief  is  not  controlled  or  influenced  by  divine 
power.  It  is  absolutely  the  handiwork  of  man,  and  was  de- 
vised, changed,  altered,  and  fitted  into  the  grooves  of  vari- 
ous imaginations.  That  part  of  it  which  relates  to  intel- 
lectual, moral  and  physical  development  should  be  retained, 
strengthened  and  made  more  useful.  Extreme  care  should 
be  exercised  in  upholding  and  upbuilding  the  belief  in  a 
Supreme  Creator.  That  part  of  our  religious  doctrines 
and  creeds  that  affirms  and  declares  faith  in  God's  guidance 


212      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

and  control,  as  also  the  resurrection,  baptism,  worship  of 
saints,  apostolic  belief,  divine  inspiration  and  other  forms 
of  religious  declarations  that  cannot  be  established  as  fact, 
should  be  eradicated  and  discarded. 

As  individuals  we  are  units  of  human  life.  Each  indi- 
vidual is  independent  in  mental  and  physical  activities,  and 
can  have  no  communication  with  another  individual  except 
in  the  manner  prescribed  by  natural  laws.  But  we  can  act 
together  for  mutual  good.  Our  religious  worship  and  or- 
ganizations were  created  for  that  purpose.  Through  that 
influence  we  may  put  down  harmful  superstition  and  simi- 
lar imaginary  belief.  We  could  crush  attempts  to  belittle 
the  majesty  of  God  by  the  assumption  of  His  name  and 
divinity  for  pecuniary  benefit.  We  could  advocate  and 
strengthen  the  desire  for  right  living,  right  thinking,  and 
right  doing.  We  could  devote  our  lives  and  our  efforts 
for  the  good  of  humanity,  both  as  individuals  and  in  com- 
bination. All  this  might  be  accomplished  through  the  in- 
fluence of  our  present  religious  organizations  by  eliminating 
the  false  from  the  true,  by  separating  the  right  from  the 
wrong,  by  segregating  the  good  from  the  evil,  and  by 
eradicating  harmful  principles  from  those  that  are  bene- 
ficial. Such  changes  would  make  the  world  better  and  add 
strength  and  vigor  to  religious  belief.  It  would  also  en- 
courage thoughtless,  skeptical,  non-interested  people  to 
join  in  the  work  of  raising  the  mental,  moral  and  intel- 
lectual standard  of  mankind. 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  213 


PROPOSITION  NUMBER  FIFTY-FIVE 

THAT  TWO  WELL   KNOWN    MENTAL  FORCES,   HOPE  AND  FEAR, 
HAVE  HAD  MUCH  TO  DO  WITH  RELEASING  MANKIND  FROM 
THE  THRALDOM  OF  SIN  AND  WICKEDNESS.    THE  HOPE  OF 
IMMORTALITY    AS    A   REWARD    FOR    RIGHT   DOING,    AND 
THE   FEAR  OF   ETERNAL   PUNISHMENT   FOR   ACTS   OF 
WRONG  DOING,   EXERCISE  A    MORE   POWERFUL   IN- 
FLUENCE FOR  HUMAN  REDEMPTION  THAN  PUL- 
PIT ORATORY.    THAT  WE  MUST  LOOK  TO  LIFE 
FOR      THE      IMMORTAL      TRANSCENDENCY. 
LIFE  IS  OUR  CREATOR  AND  IS  IMMORTAL 
AND     CANNOT     BE     DESTROYED 

THE  statement  has  been  made  that  the  most  potent 
factor  employed  by  missionaries  in  the  conversion 
of  aborigines  to  the  christian  faith  is  the  distribution 
and  explanation  of  gaudily  colored  picture  cards  depicting 
heaven  and  hell.  Heaven  with  its  winged  angels  clad  in 
white  robes  apparently  enjoying  an  easy,  saintly  existence, 
and  hell  with  its  eternal  flaming  fires  in  which  sinners  are 
being  toasted  by  hideous-looking  devils  armed  with  long 
seven-pronged  forks,  are  more  convincing  proof  of  the 
need  of  "joining"  than  bible  argument.  There  are  many 
civilized  people  who  believe  in  the  existence  of  heaven 
and  hell,  and  who  think  that  all  that  is  required  to  land 
them  in  the  realm  of  bliss  is  strict  church  attendance,  and 
a  rigid  observance  of  Sunday  as  a  day  of  prayer  and  fast- 
ing. The  argument  that  the  bible  is  the  work  of  man  is  as 
ineffective  in  convincing  them  of  that  fact  as  an  effort 
would  be  to  talk  the  ocean  into  a  calm  of  everlasting  peace 
and  quiet.  Such  remarkable  faith  in  religious  belief  must 
result  from  a  fixed  determination  to  remain  ignorant  of 
intellectual  progress.  The  world  to  them  is  still  a  great  flat 
surface  floating  in  the  ethereal. 


214      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

Mankind  has  never  had  positive  information  concerning 
the  existence  of  either  heaven  or  hell.  Mortal  knowledge 
and  power  of  comprehension  end  with  death.  The  un- 
known beyond  is  silence  and  darkness  to  every  human  be- 
ing. It  would  be  oblivion  were  it  not  for  our  faith  and  be- 
lief in  immortality.  Death  is  much  like  the  coma  produced 
by  an  anaesthetic,  except  possibly  a  momentary  deUrium 
before  life  departs.  The  immortal  future  and  eternal  dam- 
nation are  suppositous  conditions  that  owe  their  existence 
to  religious  declarations.  We  know  nothing,  absolutely 
nothing  definite  and  positive  concerning  such  alleged  future 
means  of  reward  and  punishment. 

The  same  may  be  said  of  a  personal  God  whom  we  de- 
voutly worship.  It  is  claimed  that  such  a  God  communi- 
cated with  patriarchs  and  prophets  of  bible  days,  and 
that  He  sent  His  only  begotten  Son,  Christ,  to  earth  to 
save  mankind.  That  may  be  true,  but  where  is  the  evidence 
substantiating  such  a  claim?  The  world  is  as  much  in 
need  of  God's  wisdom  and  presence  now  as  it  was  during 
bible  times.  Why  does  God  withhold  his  presence  from 
humanity  at  this  day  and  age?  It  may  be  said  that  the 
precepts  handed  down  by  Christ  are  to  be  considered  as 
God's  word  of  wisdom  and  comfort,  and  that  they  should 
become  law  and  gospel  for  our  guidance.  Two  thirds  of 
humanity  do  not  believe  that  Christ  was  the  Son  of  God, 
and  will  not  accept  his  teachings  for  their  rule  and  guide. 
They  have  reUgious  beliefs  of  their  own  which  differ  from 
the  christian  faith,  and  they  prefer  to  cling  to  their  own 
forms  of  religion.  According  to  missionary  information 
this  majority  of  humanity  is  in  religious  mental  darkness, 
dense,  deep  and  distressing,  and  is  in  great  need  of  relief. 
Surely,  the  personal  God  must  know  of  this  woeful  con-, 
dition,  and  should  communicate  with  the  leaders  of  the 
contending  religious  factions  and  start  them  on  the  right 
road  to  salvation.  If  the  personal  God  appeared  in  olden 
times  to  give  needed  counsel  and  advice,  why  does  He  not 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  215 

either  come  again  or  send  His  Son  to  extend  salvation 
to  that  part  of  mankind  which  is  benighted  and  sinful? 

That  question  is  put  plainly,  fairly,  squarely  in  order  to 
emphasize  the  fact  that  God  never  has  made  Himself 
known  to  humanity.  A  personal  God  who  would  act  as 
man's  guide,  tutor,  adviser,  servant,  protector,  and  savior 
has  never  had  an  existence.  He  dwells  only  in  the  minds 
of  intensely  religious  people  who  are  afraid  to  think  dif- 
ferently. Such  a  God  is  not  needed  for  the  salvation  of 
mankind,  were  His  existence  possible.  There  is  no  per- 
sonal God  subject  to  our  beck  and  call  such  as  is  lauded 
and  worshipped  by  certain  devotional  people.  Every 
sane  individual  in  the  civilized  world  possesses  the  ability 
to  take  care  of  himself,  provide  for  those  dependent  on 
him,  and  prepare  himself  for  immortality.  He  was  en- 
dowed through  the  process  of  procreation  with  the  germ  of 
life  that  was  originally  bestowed  on  man  by  God,  the 
Creator,  and  that  germ  places  man  at  the  head  of  the  ani- 
mal kingdom,  and  defines  his  position  as  God's  chosen 
earthly  creation. 

The  germ  of  life  bestowed  by  the  Creator  carries  with  it 
to  each  successive  generation  the  endowment  of  a  super- 
mentality,  or  mind,  that  is  capable  of  development  for  good 
or  evil  purposes.  That  germ  invests  man  with  power  to  do 
right  or  wrong,  and  to  control  the  world  and  its  sub-crea- 
tions accordingly.  It  is  presumed  that  God,  the  Creator, 
expected  man  to  upbuild  the  world  and  convert  it  into 
an  earthly  paradise,  but  before  that  may  be  done  man  must 
first  regenerate  himself,  that  his  deeds  may  be  worthy  of 
divine  commendation. 

There  is  a  God,  but  not  the  God  who  is  alleged  to  deal 
with  us  personally.  The  God  of  the  universe  is  a  Creator, 
and  not  a  meddler  in  human  affairs.  God,  the  Creator,  is 
not  the  Divine  Father  to  whom  we  attribute  our  blessings, 
victories,  fortunes  and  other  emoluments  that  contribute  to 
our  prosperity.    There  is  no  such  personal  God,  or  there 


216      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

would  not  be  so  much  distress  and  misery  to  counterbal- 
ance the  good  we  enjoy.  As  individuals  we  create  our 
own  pleasures  and  pain,  our  own  fortunes  and  misfortunes, 
our  own  mirth  and  misery  and  our  own  wealth  and  poverty. 
These  conditions  are  voluntary  or  involuntary  according  to 
the  circumstances  surrounding  them.  But  they  are  all  hu- 
man creations,  and  are  caused  by  mental  activities.  They 
spring  from  our  deeds  and  acts  of  right  or  wrong  doing, 
and  their  fountain  head  is  the  germ  of  mortal  life  endowed 
by  the  Creator. 

Salvation  and  immortality  depend  entirely  upon  the 
survival  of  the  germ  of  life,  bestowed  by  our  Creator, 
when  the  time  comes  for  our  demise.  Should  that  germ 
perish  with  our  bodies  there  could  be  no  future  salvation. 
We  owe  our  mortal  existence  to  its  influence,  and  should 
it  be  destroyed  there  could  be  no  immortality.  The  Creator 
has  provided  a  way  for  the  continuance  of  mortal  existence 
through  the  process  of  procreation.  Our  mortal  lives  are 
reproduced  by  the  birth  and  development  of  progeny,  but 
that  method  of  recreating  does  not  meet  the  requirements 
of  an  immortal  transcendency.  The  solution  of  that  prob- 
lem is  still  to  be  considered. 

There  could  be  no  soul,  or  semblance  of  our  mortal  ex- 
istence, because  our  physical  beings  are  composed  of  flesh, 
blood,  bone,  tissue  and  sinew,  all  of  which  is  perishable 
and  which  disintegrates  and  returns  to  dust  after  death. 
Immortality  and  the  record  of  our  thoughts,  acts  and  deeds 
must  then  depend  on  the  survival  of  the  germ  of  life,  which 
not  only  is  the  cause  of  our  mortal  existence,  but  also 
affords  us  the  ability  to  procreate  and  fill  the  world  with 
human  beings.  Life  is  indestructible.  A  certain  peculiar 
form  of  existence  may  be  destroyed,  but  the  life  that  caused 
the  growth  and  maturity  of  that  particular  form  never 
perishes.  Matter,  substance,  or  tangible  things  may  be  de- 
stroyed by  the  processes  of  nature,  but  life  continues  in- 
definitely.   When  mortal  death  ensues,  life  departs   from 


FINDING   THE   REAL   GOD  217 

our  bodies.  That  is  the  end  of  our  earthly  existence.  But 
it  is  not  the  end  of  the  life  that  caused  our  animate  exis- 
tence. The  same  life  that  energized  our  mental  and  physi- 
cal abilities  also  actuated  the  mentalities  that  prompted  our 
thoughts,  impulses,  acts  and  deeds  for  both  right  and  wrong 
doing.  That  life  does  not  perish  when  death  claims  our 
physical  beings. 

We  do  not  know  what,  after  death,  becomes  of  the  par- 
ticular spark  of  life  that  inspired  each  individual  existence, 
but  we  do  know  that  Hfe  is  an  independent,  indestructible 
power  or  influence,  which  keeps  the  activities  of  this  world 
and  probably  of  the  universe  moving  in  accordance  with 
the  ordinances  of  a  Divine  Creator. 

Should  Life  be  our  Creator,  our  God  of  the  universe, 
the  God  who  has  inspired  our  existence  as  individuals,  we 
then  may  be  assured  of  immortality,  provided  our  lives 
have  been  worthy.  The  record  will  be  in  the  keeping  of 
God,  the  Creator,  because  He  was  the  inspiration  of  our 
mortal  being,  through  the  influence  of  the  germ  of  life 
with  which  we  were  endowed.  The  transcendency  from 
mortality  to  immortality  would  be  simple,  practical  and 
possible.  If  worthy  of  that  final  salvation.  Life,  our  Crea- 
tor, would  transfer  us  as  individuals  to  a  higher  state  of 
existence  at  the  time  of  the  mortal  dissolution.  Immor- 
tality would  then  be  the  gift  of  our  Creator. 

We  know  that  Life,  the  Creator,  is  eternal,  immortal  and 
everlasting.  The  universe  and  the  continuous  upbuilding 
and  destruction  of  its  countless  worlds  are  evidence  of  that 
fact.  Life  creates  and  sustains  the  worlds  until  decadence 
and  disintegration  take  place.  That  is  the  process  of  all 
nature,  of  which  Life  is  the  Creator.  Wherever  there  is 
existence  there  is  life,  and  Life,  the  Creator,  is  the  inspira- 
tion of  everything  animate  and  inert.  Therefore  Life  is 
immortal  and  cannot  be  destroyed.  Life  is  endless  and  will 
endure  forever.  Consider  immortal  transcendency  from 
the  standpoint  of  human  comprehension.  The  germ  of  life 


218      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

with  which  mankind  was  endowed  inspires,  enlivens  and 
sustains  super-activities  not  found  in  other  creations. 
Among  these  mental  activities  is  a  belief  in  immortality 
to  be  obtained  by  an  existence  of  right  doing.  As  hereto- 
fore explained,  the  only  way  immortality  could  be  bestowed 
would  be  through  the  medium  of  the  germ  that  inspired 
the  worthy  activities.  The  survival  of  that  germ  and  its 
return  to  Life,  or  God,  the  Creator,  would  achieve  immor- 
tality and  accomplish  the  purpose  for  which  the  germ  of 
life  was  bestowed  on  humanity.  Immortality  would  be  a 
fitting  end  to  a  mortal  existence  of  usefulness  and  well 
doing. 


Finding  the  Real  God 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  221 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD: 

FIRST  PART 

THERE  would  be  little  difficulty  in  finding  the  real 
God  if  we  could  overcome  our  desires  to  be  controlled 
by  supernatural  influences.  It  is  a  tendency  to  be 
seeking  the  unreal,  the  impossible,  that  causes  us  to  bow 
our  heads  to  a  myth-God,  a  deity  that  has  no  existence.  We 
might  better  worship  a  wooden  idol  than  to  pray  to  a  myth- 
God.  That  form  of  worship  would  not  harm  us,  if  our 
thoughts  were  for  right  doing.  But  worshipping  a  myth-God 
from  whom  we  expect  personal  benefactions  incites  a  belief 
in  the  supernatural,  and  creates  a  desire  to  pray  for  guid- 
ance, and  protection,  in  all  of  our  business  and  personal 
undertakings.  Seeking  the  real  God  is  entirely  a  different 
matter. 

Worshipping  a  myth-God  enforces  a  constant,  persistent 
method  of  mental  training  that  creates  a  belief  in  the  un- 
real, which  in  time  becomes  a  mental  habit.  A  life  effort 
consists  of  a  series  of  mental  training  for  either  right  or 
wrong  doing.  Should  any  particular  feature  of  this  train- 
ing be  continued  for  a  considerable  length  of  time,  it  finally 
becomes  a  habit.  The  minister  of  the  gospel  preaches  cer- 
tain doctrines  through  habit  and  believes  in  them  because 
of  his  mental  training.  Persistent,  fervent  prayer  for  any 
purpose  eventually  becomes  a  habit.  If  we  pray  constantly 
for  right  doing,  we  are  sure  to  do  right,  through  the  means 
of  mental  habit.  Should  we  continue  the  use  of  foul  lan- 
guage, or  drink,  smoke  or  do  other  reprehensible  acts,  we 
inevitably  acquire  the  habit.  If  we  read  novels,  or  fritter 
away  our  time,  the  habit  is  soon  acquired.  Practicing  on  a 
musical  instrument,  or  working  at  a  mechanical  trade,  is 
made  a  habit  in  time.    Walking  without  mental  effort  to 


222       FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE   WORLD 

guide  our  footsteps  is  a  habit.  Talking  without  apparent 
thought,  and  many  other  things  we  become  accustomed  to 
doing,  are  habits  acquired  by  mental  training.  We  have 
acquired  the  habit  of  praying  for  unrealities,  and  that  is 
why  the  myth-God  has  obtained  such  a  control  over  our 
thoughts  and  deeds.  We  are  always  looking  for  something 
from  heaven  to  help  us  achieve  success. 

It  has  long  been  a  mystery  to  many  thinking  people  why 
mankind  clings  to  the  theory  that  God  answers  prayers, 
when  there  is  no  convincing  proof  of  such  a  blessing.  Habit, 
habit  is  the  answer.  All  of  our  religious  doctrines,  creeds 
and  theories  are  based  on  that  proposition.  Any  theory  that 
opposes  such  a  belief  will  be  regarded  as  rank  sacrilege. 
We  have  acquired  the  habit  of  looking  to  God,  the  Creator, 
for  guidance  and  protection  in  our  worldly  affairs,  and 
that  is  the  end  of  the  discussion,  so  far  as  public  interest 
is  concerned.  Any  argument  to  the  contrary  is  not  wel- 
comed. Understand  plainly  and  emphatically,  that  no  de- 
nial is  made  of  the  existence  of  God,  and  His  wonderful 
creations.  There  has  been  no  trusting  to  luck  in  the  creation 
of  the  universe  and  its  belongings,  no  chance  methods 
employed  in  that  marvelous  undertaking.  Our  own  world, 
with  its  kingdoms  of  life  and  activity,  is  proof  sufficient 
that  we  are  creatures  of  God's  handiwork.  But  there  is 
no  good  reason  why  we  should  regard  God  as  a  servant, 
because  we  owe  our  existence  to  His  beneficence.  On  the 
contrary,  we  should  worship  God  as  a  Sublime  Deity, 
and  not  as  a  personal  ruler  whose  duty  it  is  to  overlook 
our  worldly  domain  and  make  sure  that  we  are  rich  and 
prosperous. 

Let  us  see  what  we  expect  of  God.  Religious  habit,  ac- 
quired by  thousands  of  years  of  custom,  has  caused  us  to 
look  upon  God  both  as  a  Creator  and  an  overseer  of  our 
worldly  welfare.  We  have  been  taught  to  pray  to  God  for 
personal  and  public  protection.  Our  church  and  other  relig- 
ious creeds  instruct  us  to  do  so.  Public  and  personal  prayers 


FINDING   THE  REAL   GOD  223 

are  offered  for  freedom  from  all  forms  of  evil.  When 
several  countries  wage  war  against  each  other,  each  side 
of  the  warlike  conflict  proclaims  that  God  is  its  champion 
and  protector,  and  that  victory  will  be  won  in  His  name. 
When  the  war  is  over  proclamations  are  published  by  the 
victorious  country  thanking  God  for  the  strength  and 
power  to  conquer  the  enemy,  always  forgetting  that  vic- 
tory invariably  perches  on  the  banners  of  the  strongest, 
best  equipped  armies,  commanded  by  superior  officers. 
When  there  is  drouth,  church  congregations  and  people 
residing  in  the  dry  district,  beseech  God  for  rain.  When 
there  is  a  disastrous  fire  that  consumes  property,  God  is 
implored  to  stop  its  havoc.  When  there  is  a  flood,  a  plague, 
or  any  other  great  disaster,  people  go  on  their  knees  to 
pray  for  relief  from  its  ravages.  When  afflicted  with  mis- 
fortune, we  turn  to  God  for  protection.  When  financial 
ruin  stares  us  in  the  face  we  pray  to  God  to  be  saved  from 
that  distress.  When  in  trouble  of  any  kind,  big  or  little, 
we  beg  for  divine  grace  and  mercy.  But  that  is  not  so 
reprehensible  as  it  is  to  pray  for  God  to  help  us  in  our 
business  investments,  love  affairs,  domestic  troubles,  at- 
tempts to  swindle  friends,  and  other  efforts,  honest  or 
otherwise,  to  further  our  interests. 

There  is  no  question  about  the  sincerity  and  earnestness 
of  the  church,  and  other  religious  organizations,  in  their 
public  endeavor  to  benefit  mankind,  or  of  the  individuals 
engaged  in  this  wholesale  effort  to  attract  God's  attention 
to  our  needs  and  desires.  Such  efforts  date  back  to  the 
beginning  of  civilization,  possibly  to  the  prehistoric  age, 
and  the  custom  has  been  of  such  long  standing  that  it  is  a 
religious  and  sacred  habit,  if  there  could  be  such  a  thing. 
Take  as  an  illustration  what  has  been  expected  of  God 
during  this  long,  long  period  of  years  since  man  has  been 
developed  into  a  worshipping  individual.  All  of  the  differ- 
ent nationalities  and  races,  countless  in  variety  and  number, 
have  been  beseeching  God  for  His  protection  and  guidance, 


224      FOR   THE   GOOD   OF   THE    WORLD 

as  individuals,  in  their  multitudinous  conglomeration  of 
languages  since  the  creation  of  mankind.  It  would  be  im- 
possible for  a  human  mentality  to  comprehend  the  number- 
less difficulties  encountered  in  the  vast  work  of  giving  at- 
tention to  these  countless  appeals.  There  also  are  the 
varied  changes  during  this  long  period  of  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  years  in  the  races  and  nationalities  to  be  con- 
sidered, each  one  of  which  had  its  own  perculiar  language, 
which  God  was  supposed  to  understand.  Even  in  this  day 
and  age  God  would  have  His  troubles  in  keeping  informed 
of  the  different  types  of  human  creations,  their  varied 
forms  of  religious  belief,  the  various  languages,  the  several 
degrees  of  intelligence,  and  shades  of  color.  God  would  be 
required  to  answer  the  prayers  of  black,  brown,  red,  yellow 
and  white  people,  some  with  curly  and  others  with  straight 
hair.  The  prayers  for  aid  and  protection  would  be  in  Eng- 
lish, French,  German,  Italian,  Hindu,  Turkish,  Spanish, 
Esquimau,  Choctaw,  Sioux,  Digger  Indian,  Greek,  Latin, 
Russian,  Finnish,  Norwegian,  Swedish,  and  every  other 
language  from  that  of  the  Hottentots  up.  This  would  seem 
to  be  a  task,  but  it  is  said  that  God  knows  everything. 
That  may  be  true,  but  man  devises  and  upbuilds  his  own 
languages. 

It  is  supposed  to  have  been  five  hundred  thousand  years 
since  prehistoric  man  first  existed,  and  that  is  the  length 
of  the  period  that  God  has  endeavored  to  control  mankind, 
His  favorite  creation,  according  to  the  belief  of  man.  Take 
into  consideration  that  there  also  were  the  affairs  of  the 
immeasurable  universe  to  control  and  keep  in  order,  that 
each  world,  with  its  belongings,  might  move  in  its  orbit  with 
regularity  and  precision.  That  would  be  some  work  for 
the  personal  God  we  are  supposed  to  worship,  in  addition  to 
looking  after  our  welfare.  But  God  is  equal  to  such  a  task 
if  we  are  to  believe  our  religious  instructors.  They  also 
inform  us  that  God,  the  personal  God,  is  to  be  found  in 
heavenly  realms,  where  He  and  his  angels  dwell  in  ever- 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD  225 

lasting  peace,  and  that  God  sits  on  a  gorgeous  throne  in 
such  dazzling  and  majestic  splendor  that  mortal  eyes  could 
not  gaze  upon  Him.  The  heavenly  city,  the  place  of  God's 
residence,  is  equipped  with  pearly  streets,  golden  gates  and 
other  refulgent  improvements.  Who  but  man  could  con- 
jure up  such  an  inconsistent  fairy  tale?  Who  but 
man  could  contrive  a  belief  in  the  existence  of  a  per- 
sonal God  to  create  and  control  the  working  of  this 
vast  universe?  Who  but  man  could  devise  the  scheme  of 
God's  personal  interest  in  the  welfare  of  mankind?  Who 
but  man  could  perpetuate  a  religion,  or  a  number  of  relig- 
ions, that  advocate  a  belief  in  a  myth-God?  Who  but  man 
could  keep  up  and  insist  on  maintaining  such  a  baneful 
influence  as  that  of  relying  on  the  supernatural  for  our 
comfort  and  happiness?  Who  but  man  could  conceive 
and  put  into  practice  the  many  diverse  forms  and  kinds 
of  religious  beliefs  now  in  use?  Who  but  man  could  have 
so  often  cheerfully  changed  his  religious  belief  to  meet 
the  demands  of  intellectual  progress? 

There  are  other  incredible,  impossible  declarations  in 
every  form  of  religious  doctrine  promulgated  that  indicate 
plainly  that  man  is  the  creator  of  the  myth-God  we  worship 
and  of  our  varied  religious  opinions.  Miracles  in  ancient 
times  were  the  best  asset  for  building  up  a  religion  and 
making  it  popular  that  could  be  devised.  But  we  are  living 
in  an  age  of  what  might  be  termed  man-miracles,  and 
must  be  shown  the  real  thing  now  before  we  can  be  con- 
vinced. When  we  are  told  that  in  bible  days  chosen  ones 
were  sent  to  heaven  in  chariots,  we  feel  sure  that  there 
were  no  balloons  and  aeroplanes  in  those  times  and  that 
the  tale  needs  confirmation.  The  conception  of  Christ  and 
the  blood  atonement  are  two  inconsistencies  that  may  only 
be  explained  by  man.  God  is  not  sending  angels  in  modem 
times  to  procreate  Divine  Sons,  nor  is  He  now  disinherit- 
ing from  salvation  and  heavenly  realms  people  who  lived 
and  died  before  the  crucifixion  of  Christ.    Were  any  per- 


226       FOR  THE  GOOD  OF  THE  WORLD 

son  in  this  era  to  stand  beside  the  body  of  a  dead  man  and 
recall  him  to  life,  all  of  the  doctors  and  scientists  would 
feel  like  committing  suicide,  imagining  that  they  were  crazy. 
No  one  nowadays  thinks  of  seeing  miracles,  except  spirit- 
ual mediums,  clairvoyants,  mind  readers,  science  healers 
and  madhouse  inmates. 

Worshipping  a  myth-God  is  our  worst  religious  offense 
in  this  modern  age,  and  that  mistake  has  always  been  made. 
It  is  a  part  of  our  prehistoric  heritage.  A  belief  in  the 
supernatural  and  in  superstition  has  been  handed  down  to 
the  present  generation  from  time  immemorial.  Don't  start 
anything  on  Friday.  Drop  a  fork  and  it's  a  sign  of  bad 
luck.  Don't  walk  under  a  ladder.  Someone  is  talking  about 
you  when  your  cheeks  bum.  Always  get  out  of  bed  on 
the  right  side.  Sleep  with  your  head  to  the  north.  These  and 
hundreds  of  similar  absurdities  have  much  to  do  with  our 
conduct.  We  must  pray  before  pictures  of  certain  saints 
in  order  to  receive  specified  benefactions,  and  bum  candles 
that  our  prayers  may  be  answered.  In  some  churches  we 
are  required  to  subscribe  to  specified  articles  of  faith  be- 
fore we  may  be  saved.  In  other  churches  it  is  necessary 
to  be  baptized  by  being  submerged  in  water  or  by  be- 
ing sprinkled  with  water.  People  who  are  not  recipients  of 
the  holy  ghost  cannot  become  aspirants  for  heavenly  honors 
is  another  religious  edict.  Some  churches  assert  that  only  a 
certain  few  of  the  select  may  be  favored  with  salvation. 
Other  churches  lay  claim  to  the  sacred  road,  and  all  those 
who  worship  with  them  will  travel  thereon.  But  all  churches 
advocate  prayer  as  a  means  of  reaching  God's  ear,  for 
supplicating  His  guidance  in  earthly  affairs.  Where  is  the 
personal  God  who  listens  to  our  appeals  for  assistance? 
Not  one  of  these  monitors  of  religious  culture  can  tell  us. 
God  is  everywhere  is  their  reply,  indefinite  as  it  may  seem. 
They  mean  that  God  sees  and  knows  our  slightest  move- 
ment. That  may  be  true,  but  why  pray  to  Him  if  He  is 
constantly  watching  over  our  welfare?    Praying  to  an  un- 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD  227 

knowable,  unseen  God  is  like  tossing  gold  pieces  into  the 
ocean  to  see  them  float.  We  want  to  know  God,  to  see, 
hear  and  feel  His  presence.  But  before  that  may  be  done 
we  must  find  Him. 


228       FOR  THE  GOOD  OF  THE  WORLD 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD: 

SECOND  PART 

SEEKING  God  will  be  a  pleasant  duty  to  those  who 
truly  make  the  effort.  We  have  not  far  to  go  to 
find  him.  His  whereabouts  may  be  easy  of  access, 
or  we  may  be  compelled  to  prolong  our  endeavors,  but  our 
real  god  may  be  found  by  every  aspirant  eager  to  see  and 
know  him.  First,  look  carefully,  searchingly  into  your  own 
heart.  What  do  you  see,  God,  or  the  semblance  of  a  demon  ? 
One  or  the  other  is  there,  possibly  both  of  them.  Should 
neither  of  them  seem  apparent,  recall  and  thoughtfully  re- 
view your  life  career.  God  or  the  demon  or  both  of  them 
are  manifest  in  your  acts  and  deeds.  You  have  only  to 
recall  what  you  have  done  and  you  will  see  to  what  ele- 
ment of  life,  the  good  or  the  evil,  you  belong.  You  may  be 
surprised  to  learn  that  the  real  God  you  are  to  worship 
dwells  within  your  own  mind.  That  is  true,  but  He  will 
not  guide  and  control  your  thoughts,  acts  and  deeds  for 
right  doing,  unless  you  prepare  the  way  that  He  may  dom- 
inate your  mentaHty. 

The  germ  of  mortal  life  which  originally  caused  our 
existence  has  been  handed  down  from  parent  to  child  since 
the  beginning,  and  that  germ  indicates,  when  developed  into 
manhood  or  womanhood,  whether  or  not  we  are  human  gods 
or  demons.  There  is  no  other  God  that  controls  or  guides 
our  affairs.  As  human  beings  we  are  not  subject  to  super- 
natural influences.  Each  individual  is  a  unit,  independent 
and  distinct  from  every  other  form  of  earthly  creation. 
We  are  governed  and  controlled  entirely  by  natural  laws, 
and  these  laws  relate  only  to  the  method  of  our  procreation, 
birth,  life  and  death.    All  else  in  our  earthly  existence  is 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD  229 

within  our  own  individual  control,  assisted  by  such  efforts 
as  may  come  from  fellow  beings.  The  only  way  to  ascer- 
tain the  correctness  of  the  above  statement  is  to  follow  as 
carefully  as  possible  the  explanation  as  to  how  we  may  find 
the  real  God,  not  God  the  Creator  of  the  universe,  but  the 
man-God  who  guides,  controls  and  influences  our  existence 
as  individuals,  the  God  every  human  individual  possesses 
whose  mentality  is  under  sane  and  vigorous  control. 

We  come  into  the  world  as  puny,  helpless  infants,  crea- 
tures of  a  procreative  process  by  which  we  were  impreg- 
nated with  the  germ  of  mortal  life.  That  germ,  unques- 
tionably, was  originally  an  endowment  of  the  real  God, 
the  Creator  of  the  universe,  a  Deity  with  wonderful  crea- 
tive powerc.  That  germ  of  life  when  once  bestowed  on 
any  form  of  creation  becomes  an  everlasting  dower  which 
is  destined  to  perpetuate  that  particular  form  of  creation 
as  long  as  means  are  provided  for  its  subsistence.  As 
creatures  of  life  we  are  the  only  form  of  earthly  creation 
that  was  endowed  with  a  superior  mentality,  which,  when 
developed,  provides  us  with  ability  to  control  and  govern 
all  other  forms  of  earthly  existence.  This  mentality  is  a 
functional,  physical  organ,  occupying  the  cranium  of  our 
skulls,  and  consists  of  a  convoluted,  whitish  mass  of  brain 
cells,  connected  with  nerve  fibers  that  ramify  in  every  part 
of  our  bodies.  The  brain  cells  are  divided  into  centers  that 
cover  certain  areas  of  the  convoluted  brain  organ,  each 
center  controlling  its  particular  mental  or  physical  func- 
tions, and  causing  mental  and  physical  activities,  when 
actuated  by  the  six  senses.  These  senses  furnish  the  mental 
energy  that  enables  us  to  use  the  cellular  activities.  Read- 
ers of  this  book  are  requested  to  refer  to  the  detailed  de- 
scriptions in  the  series  of  propositions,  also  to  the  pages 
illustrating  the  brain  organism  and  nervous  system  of  a 
human  being. 

We  are  so  constituted,  mentally  and  physically,  that  com- 
munication may  not  be  had  with  us,  either  supematurally 


230       FOR  THE  GOOD  OF  THE  WORLD 

or  otherwise,  except  by  means  of  the  five  senses.  We  must 
see,  hear,  touch  or  feel,  smell,  or  taste  before  a  sense  may 
be  called  into  use.  When  that  is  done  mental  activity  is 
awakened,  and  we  are  able  to  understand  the  communica- 
tion. In  no  other  way  may  a  message  or  communication 
be  made  intelligible.  It  may  seem  sacrilegious  to  make  the 
assertion,  but  it  is  a  fact  that  God,  the  Creator,  could  not 
communicate  with  any  one  or  more  of  us,  unless  in  the 
manner  above  described.  That  is  the  reason  why  there 
could  be  no  healing  by  the  alleged  divine  mind,  no  trans- 
mission of  thought,  no  clairvoyance,  no  spirit  communica- 
tions of  any  kind  by  supernatural  influence.  The  use  of 
the  five  senses  is  absolutely  necessary  to  arouse  mental 
activity  from  outside  or  extraneous  sources. 

It  is  a  belief  in  the  supernatural,  the  unreal,  the  unreli- 
able that  causes  us  to  neglect  developing  our  mentalities 
by  natural,  practical  methods.  We  trust  too  much  to  luck, 
and  to  a  feeling  that  everything  will  come  out  all  right, 
when  engaged  in  our  daily  vocations.  Sometimes  what 
seems  to  be  chance  causes  our  undertakings  to  be  success- 
ful, but  as  a  rule  no  human  calling  is  prosperous,  unless 
guided  and  controlled  by  a  sane,  common-sense  mentality. 
Would  you  expect  supernatural  power  to  move  a  stick  of 
timber,  or  to  carry  you  up  a  flight  of  stairs?  Such  an 
expectation  is  as  reasonable  as  would  be  the  possibility  of 
having  a  debt  paid,  or  of  being  made  rich  by  some  unex- 
pected good  fortune,  apparently  through  supernatural  in- 
fluence. We  were  provided  with  mental  ability  to  build 
our  own  good  fortunes,  and  to  enjoy  the  blessings  of  earthly 
life,  but  that  cannot  be  done  by  people  possessed  with  slug- 
gish, inactive,  undeveloped  mentalities.  They  lack  the  brain 
energy,  the  mental  force,  the  ability  to  concentrate  and 
apply  their  efforts,  or  they  would  prosper  in  almost  any 
undertaking. 

Among  the  causes  of  delay  in  mental  development  for 
right  thinking  is  the  belief  in  spiritualism.  There  is  nothing 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD  231 

in  our  mental  and  physical  belongings  as  human  beings  that 
justifies  such  a  belief.  We  are  absolute  creatures  of  nature, 
of  the  family  of  vertebrates,  and  are  beings  of  bone,  sinew, 
flesh  and  cell  tissue,  mentally  and  physically.  Our  every 
act  and  movement  result  from  the  activity  of  brain  and 
nerve  cells,  all  of  which  are  subject  to  degeneration  and 
decay,  together  with  our  bodily  functions,  after  death  en- 
sues. There  could  be  no  spirit  existence  either  before  or 
after  death.  There  is  nothing  about  us  mentally  or  physi- 
cally that  has  not  been  analyzed  and  its  component  parts 
made  known.  Had  there  been  anything  about  that  analysis 
that  would  have  justified  a  belief  in  spiritualism  we  would 
have  heard  from  it  long  ago.  We  are  told  that  spirits 
move  about,  transmit  communications,  and  act  as  they  did 
in  animate  life.  They  pass  through  closed  doors,  utter 
groans,  make  noises,  rap  on  tables  and  frighten  nervous 
people.  How  could  this  be  done  by  a  spirit  composed  of 
nothing?  It  is  safe  to  say  that  there  are  no  spirits  of  an 
ethereal  nature.  There  are  mentalities  that  see  things, 
sometimes,  that  are  very  unreal.  That  is  either  when  there 
is  lack  of  mental  control  or  because  the  mind  has  been 
trained  by  constant  effort  to  imagine  unrealities.  There 
have  been  people  who  thought  they  could  walk  on  water 
without  the  use  of  water  skates.  The  coroner  has  always 
regretted  that  he  could  not  tell  them  that  they  were  mis- 
taken. 

We  shall  never  find  the  real  God,  until  our  mentalities 
are  fitted  for  that  purpose.  It  is  not  necessary  that  we 
become  prosperous  in  worldly  affairs,  or  that  we  make 
martyrs  of  ourselves  in  our  efforts  to  cast  off  sinful  bur- 
dens. We  are  not,  and  cannot  be  saints,  as  long  as  we  are 
super-animals.  But  we  should  learn  to  control  ourselves, 
and  to  stop  all  forms  of  wrong  doing  that  injure  health,  de- 
stroy peace  of  mind,  and  cause  distress  and  discomfort  to 
others.  A  good,  contented,  peace-loving  citizen  is  worth 
more  to  the  world  than  the  millionaire  who  is  constantly 


232       FOR  THE  GOOD  OF  THE  WORLD 

grabbing  off  the  opportunities  of  others  to  enjoy  the  com- 
forts of  life.  What  we  should  do  to  find  the  real  God  is 
to  begin  the  search  by  pledging  ourselves  to  pray,  as  in- 
dividuals, for  our  own  right  doing,  right  thinking  and 
right  living. 

Those  of  us  who  are  church  members  should  immediately 
stop  thinking  that  a  belief  in  any  one  particullar  faith,  or 
religion,  is  essential  to  salvation.  The  germ  of  life  was 
bestowed  on  all  of  the  human  race  and  not  on  any  one 
nationality,  class  or  color  of  people.  God,  the  Creator,  en- 
dowed all  mankind  with  a  super-intellect,  and  no  reserva- 
tions were  made  favoring  any  one  form  of  religion.  The 
only  qualification  necessary  to  achieve  happiness,  content- 
ment and  the  hope  of  an  immortal  future  is  mental  fitness. 
That  is  a  question  of  training,  mental  effort  and  brain  cell 
development.  Every  human  being  possesses  the  six  senses, 
the  same  brain  cellular  organ,  and  the  same  means  of 
mental  development,  whether  he  be  white,  black,  red  or 
yellow.  But  not  all  individuals  have  had  the  same  oppor- 
tunities for  mental  progress.  Those  of  us  who  are  mentally 
unfit,  or  who  have  wasted  our  opportunities  to  become  men- 
tally proficient,  may  yet  be  made  worthy  of  the  blessing  to 
be  enjoyed  by  mental  regeneration.  A  church  membership 
is  not  essential  to  this  regeneration,  although  it  is  recom- 
mended. Church  and  other  religious  associations  are  bene- 
ficial, but  not  absolutely  necessary.  Mental  regeneration  is 
an  individual  affair.  It  may  only  be  accomplished  by  indi- 
vidual endeavor.  Church  membership  and  attendance,  ritu- 
alistic readings,  pulpit  prayers  and  oratory,  choir  singing, 
Sunday  school  exercises,  and  other  forms  of  religious  wor- 
ship, may  inspire  thoughts  of  right  doing,  but  the  actual 
mental  regeneration  will  only  result  from  individual  en- 
deavor. 

Mental  regeneration  changes  involuntarily  the  life  habits 
of  a  person  possessed  with  an  evil  mind,  and  causes  him  to 
become  an  exemplary,  reputable  citizen.    The  conversion 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD  288 

will  be  gradual  in  both  mind  and  body.  The  red-blooded 
profligate  is  as  bad,  viewed  from  a  moral  standpoint,  as 
the  skinny  criminal  who  picks  pockets.  Such  men  or  women 
need  mental  regeneration  fully  as  much  as  do  people  half 
dead  from  the  effects  of  their  misdeeds. 

Mental  regeneration  is  good  for  any  person,  even  those 
who  pride  themselves  on  their  freedom  from  wrong  doing. 
It  will  prove  especially  beneficial  to  the  hypocrite,  whose 
sanctimony  oozes  from  the  pores  of  his  skin  along  with  the 
perspiration.  Mental  regeneration  is  a  panacea  for  worry, 
disappointment,  perplexities,  sorrow,  despair,  troubles,  dis- 
tress of  mind  or  body,  and  every  form  of  ailment  not  deeply 
seated  in  a  physical  function.  When  the  world  seems  dark 
and  dreary,  and  the  mind  is  depressed  and  gloomy,  the 
method  employed  to  regenerate  the  mentality  will  clear 
away  the  clouds  that  we  may  again  see  sunshine.  When 
remorse  or  sinful  regrets  cause  despair  of  our  ever  over- 
coming desires  for  wrong  doing,  a  resort  to  an  endeavor  to 
regenerate  the  mind  will  revive  hope  and  bring  welcome  re- 
lief. When  misfortune  befalls,  and  our  hearts  sink  and 
seem  to  lose  their  power  to  invigorate,  we  have  only  to  try 
the  method  of  upbuilding  our  mental  energy  to  lighten  the 
burdens  that  seem  so  heavy. 

There  is  only  one  way  to  regenerate  the  mentality,  and 
that  is  by  good,  honest,  heartfelt  prayer.  Not  the  prayer 
that  is  uttered  for  its  eloquence,  or  for  publicity.  Not  the 
prayer  that  is  offered  for  a  selfish  purpose.  Not  the  prayer 
we  make  for  the  welfare  of  others.  Not  the  prayer  spoken 
for  guidance  when  our  thoughts  are  wandering.  Not  the 
prayer  for  self-agrandizement.  Not  the  prayer  of  a  per- 
son too  good  to  kneel  in  humble  submission.  Such  prayers 
will  not  regenerate  a  mentality.  When  praying  for  self- 
betterment  we  are  dealing  with  brain  cellular  development, 
and  only  worthy,  honest  prayers  will  develop  cells  that 
will  create  mental  strength  for  right  doing.  Before  we  can 
live  right,  do  right  and  see  the  right,  our  mentalities  must 


234       FOR  THE  GOOD  OF  THE  WORLD 

be  controlled  for  right  doing.  The  mentality  is  the  person 
de  facto.  Our  bodily  functions  perform  the  duties  prompted 
by  the  mentality.  If  our  mental  control  is  wrong  we  will 
do  wrong.  There  is  no  escaping  the  penalty  of  possessing  a 
mentality  that  instigates  wrong  doing.  To  regenerate  such 
a  mentality  we  must  create  a  desire  for  right  doing.  To  per- 
petuate and  make  that  desire  lasting,  we  must  develop 
sufficient  brain  cellular  strength  for  right  doing  to  gain 
control  of  the  mentality.  When  that  control  is  gained  by 
brain  cellular  development  we  will  do  right.  It  will  be  seen 
that  mental  regeneration  is  a  physical,  sensible  process.  It 
is  not  a  method  of  holding  desires  for  wrong  doing  in 
restraint  by  religious  ardor.  It  is  a  complete  overcoming  of 
such  desires  by  subjugating  the  cellular  influence  that 
prompts  wrong  doing.  That  is  the  reason  why  our  prayers 
for  right  doing  must  be  strictly  honest  and  sincere.  We 
are  praying  to  develop  cellular  control,  and  not  for  self- 
restraint. 

Prayers  for  right  doing  should  not  only  be  sincere  and 
honest,  but  they  should  also  be  free  from  thoughts  of  wrong 
doing.  To  think  wrong  is  to  do  wrong,  and  it  is  impossible 
to  pray  earnestly  while  thoughts  of  wrong  doing  are  float- 
ing through  the  mind.  Prayers  exclusively  for  right  doing 
will  invigorate  the  mentality,  and  cause  it  to  influence  the 
physical  functions  more  freely  by  means  of  the  nerve  fibers. 
Prayers  for  wrong  doing,  if  offered,  would  have  an  opposite 
effect,  because  wrong  doing  in  any  form  is  disastrous  to 
both  mind  and  body.  Right  doing  is  an  upbuilding  process. 
Wrong  doing  is  a  destructive  force.  That  argument  applies 
to  everything  in  nature.  Right  means  to  cultivate,  to  up- 
build ;  wrong  means  to  destroy,  disintegrate  and  cause  decay. 
Prayers  for  right  doing  inspire  and  upbuild  mental  strength 
and  vigor,  health,  hope,  salutary  influences,  and  beneficial 
desires.  Wrong  doing  instigates  and  creates  mental  distress, 
criminal  tendencies,  bestial  desires,  physical  weakness  and 
ill  health.    Mental  forces  that  destroy  the  ability  to  enjoy 


FINDING  THE  REAL  GOD  236 

peace  of  mind,  comfort  and  happiness  should  be  overcome. 

Seeking  the  real  God  puts  sunshine  in  life  and  causes  it 
to  be  worth  having.  To  be  independent  and  free  from  care 
should  be  our  most  cherished  ambition.  Worry,  grief  and 
disappointment  cause  most  of  our  troubles,  and  they  belong 
to  the  element  of  wrong  doing.  The  only  way  to  banish 
every  influence  that  creates  sorrow  and  unhappiness  is  to 
regenerate  the  mind  and  put  it  under  sane  mental  control. 
Mental  strength  is  needed  to  overcome  mental  troubles. 
That  strength  must  be  upbuilded  by  brain  cellular  develop- 
ment and  activity  on  the  same  principle  employed  to  create 
muscular  strength.  Both  essentials  to  well  doing  are  accom- 
plished by  exercise.  Prayer  is  a  mental  exercise  that  up- 
builds a  desire  for  right  doing.  We  pray  earnestly,  sin- 
cerely, devoutly  for  that  purpose.  The  desire  to  do  right 
is  made  stronger  by  the  prayerful  endeavors  until  it  be- 
comes a  fixed  habit,  a  controlling  influence  over  the  mental- 
ity. When  that  influence  dominates  our  tendencies  to  do 
wrong,  the  victory  over  all  forms  of  wrong  doing  will  be 
won.  We  will  stop  creating  our  own  misery  and  distress, 
and  will  become  independent,  self-supporting,  well-doing 
people.  Our  mental  and  physical  health  will  be  strengthened 
and  upbuilded.  Strong,  sane  minds  inspire  good  deeds. 
Good  deeds  cause  us  to  become  reputable  and  worthy. 

The  man,  or  woman,  controlled  by  a  regenerated  mental- 
ity, that  inspires  right  doing,  right  living,  and  right  thinking, 
may  see  a  reflection  of  the  real  God  every  time  he  or  she 
looks  into  a  mirror.  God,  the  Creator,  could  do  no  more 
than  to  be  always  doing  right.  That  means  doing  right  in 
every  way  from  the  Supreme  Influence  of  an  Infinite 
Creator  down  to  the  duties  of  a  human  being.  Right  doing 
must  be  our  only  means  of  becoming  worthy  of  an  immor- 
tal existence.  We  must  do  right  in  this  life,  or  there  will 
be  no  hereafter.  We  cannot  deceive  ourselves  on  that 
proposition.  We  are  controlled  by  mentalities  that  never 
make  a  mistake  when  it  comes  to  reviewing  our  claim  to 


236       FOR  THE  GOOD  OF  THE  WORLD 

worthiness.  That  germ  of  mortal  life  with  which  we  are 
impregnated  and  to  which  we  owe  our  existence  is  the 
tell-tale  that  will  decide  our  fate.  If  we  ever  find  the  real 
God,  the  Sublime  Creator,  it  will  be  through  its  influence. 
For  that  germ  is  the  source  of  our  mental  activities,  of  our 
efforts  to  do  right,  of  our  longings  and  desires  for  a  future 
existence,  and  of  our  hope  to  find  and  know  the  real  God. 
The  germ  of  life  is  an  indication  of  God's  approval  of 
mankind. 


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